Over a war zone!

Hello from over Afghanistan!

I never really thought that I would be regularly flying over a war zone. It truly does seem strange to me that our dispatchers are able to call and get permission for us to fly over Pakistan and Afghanistan. The permission numbers have to be repeated on the air and are very long, about 20 different letters and numbers. Once this is read to the controller and he verifies, then we can proceed into the airspace over these countries. You see Kandahar on the news all the time, and it's not usually good. When we are flying at 40,000 feet (or 39,000 over Afghanistan, anything over 39,000 is considered military airspace so we have to come down) it sure makes me think about what my options are if we have to do an unscheduled landing. But, since we now have regular business interests in Tblisi, Georgia, we will be flying this route regularly for years to come. Even the passengers are curious and want to look out the window and see what it looks like down where terrorists hide out and where it could be very hostile if we had to land unexpectedly. So far, our Citation has been a flawless performer and doesn't seem to know that it's over what could be hostile territory if we weren't up at these stratospheric altitudes. The trip across was a little shorter this time because the headwinds were much less this time of year then they were last January. But, our dispatch tried a different handler this time and it turned out to be a mistake. Last time we had used Universal Aviation out of Houston and things went flawlessly. Our turnaround fuel stop in Iran had gone perfectly and we were back in the air in less than 45 minutes. This time they acted like they didn't know we were coming and they wanted cash for the fuel. We were able to hand them the rather large sum of money but they came back from the bank and said that they couldn't pump the fuel because the bank wanted only NEW money. Ours looked new and still had the bills stuck together like new, but they weren't quite new enough and so, even with cash, we were in trouble. A couple of phone calls later and suddenly the gas began to flow. But, then there were other problems with the money issues and so eventually they parked the fuel truck in front of the plane so that we couldn't move until it was resolved. They also hadn't filed our flight plans for us and so that required another 30 minutes with ATC in the tower. All in all, our guys waited in the sun for about 1:45 before we got everything organized and back flying again. I have to say that I got a little hostile with dispatch because there is enough stress flying over war zones without trying to figure out all the details yourself on the ground with cash that isn't good enough because the company tried to save a nickel on the handler. I told them that it kind of defeats the purpose of taking your own plane if you miss all the deadlines for the meetings that you set up. Since it looks like we will be taking this trip regularly we got the business cards and phone numbers of guys we can call on the ground before we leave to verify that it's all been done.

Anyway, we got to Tblisi to find out that they hadn't really done their job here, either. Last time they had set up a special line for us to get through customs and handled the fees for everything beforehand. This time they didn't even want to take our bags because the handler had told them not to give the VIP service, which is more expensive. It's a long ways to the terminal and that won't happen again. Once inside, the guys had to pay for their own visas and so on.

But, we did arrive safely and are enjoying the summer weather in Tblisi. I guess Hillary Clinton had been here the day before in a show of support for Georgia over Russia in their dispute about who is going to control Georgia. Georgia got kind of upset about all this and actually tore down a 58 year old statute of Stalin that had been erected under the Soviet regime because I guess Stalin was born in some city in Georgia. It kind of reminded me of when they tore down the statute of Saddam Hussein in Beirut when American invaded Iraq a few years ago only this statute came down at night without a lot of fanfare.

We had planned on going and doing a lot of outdoor activities while here but our guide is gone to the mountains and is out of contact so we don't know. We have scheduled another whitewater rafting trip with someone else just in case. When you think of the climate and weather here, you have to think a lot like Colorado, which can be very pleasant in the summer time, too. Tblisi is only 1600 feet above sea level so it is hot in the afternoon, but not far away are mountains that rise to well over 10,000 feet.

We are for sure going to Israel now, just a couple of days after we get back from Tblisi. I think we will be in Delhi for two days and then depart for Israel. I am looking forward to this flight. The last time I was in Israel was 1995 and we flew in a commercial jet, so this will be such a high for me to fly over the "Holy Land" in our corporate jet. Kind of brings my two worlds together in a unique way, since I am trained as a minister but have been a professional pilot for over 30 years. International flying is challenging in ways that you cannot imagine in the USA, but in return the rewards are also amazing as you see sights and sounds that are so different from home. I was again reminded of how different it is as we flew across very hostile territory and spoke with controllers whose accents were very difficult to understand on equipment that seems to be horribly outdated and in need of replacement. Anyone who has flown over Cuba will understand what I mean. And, then you have to proceed with nonunderstandable commands and requests and things like permission flyover numbers and radios that keep breaking up and are so static filled that you cannot make out what they are saying. Sometimes you will fly for 100 or more miles without hearing from anyone or getting a reply on your radios while over hostile territory. It's just quite different, that's for sure. Some of the stations are just so far away and then I think sometimes the controllers just go for coffee or something and don't answer for 20 minutes or so. But, at least over Afghanistan again, we had a nice American military controller. When I asked him where he was from he said Seattle. He said there are 24 guys controlling all of the country and they are doing it without a single radar scope. Keeping track of airplanes like they do over the North Atlantic with position reports and estimates for fixes and so on. He said it's very different. I can only imagine what their lives are like on the ground, too, with trying to not get blown up on your way to work and so on. Since American controllers are required to retire at age 55 in the states, some of these guys are probably my age and just trying to get a few more years in before they hang it up.

We got a nice hotel this time in Tblisi and I will put up some photos from the trip plus some of the things we are doing here. I have got to bring Karen as they have these huge sections of downtown that are dedicated to just selling your stuff and it's like a huge yard sale but the stuff is so cool. Today I bought a working, wind-up phonograph player with many records. First of all, it's in great condition, but just the fact that it works and is so old is going to be so cool to have at the house. Maybe I will sell it on e-bay, who knows. There is artwork and antique silver and antique placeware, etc. A knowledgeable person could surely do well here, I am dangerous but really enjoy seeing all the old stuff. Now my windup phonograph will be my treasure this time.

Too cool!

Well, I hope everyone is doing well. It's a big world out there. All my life I had wanted to go to one of the General Conference sessions for our church and it's always been on the other side of the world for me. This time it was in Atlanta, Georgia (USA) and I was on the other side of the world, so I still didn't get to go. Oh well, maybe next time.

Take care and we'll give you more photos and stories soon.

Dan