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Browsing Tag: PNG

Flying the Giant Pigeon Dash-8-100 — In the Cockpit

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P2-MCK on the ground at Goroka in the New Guinea Highlands. Photo by Bernie Leighton | AirlineReporter.com

P2-MCK on the ground at Goroka in the New Guinea Highlands – Photo: Bernie Leighton | AirlineReporter

This is part of a series about visiting Papua New Guinea.  In part one, Bernie reviewed flying Air Niugini.  In part two, he visited (New) Ireland and (New) Britain via a Q400.  In part three, he checked out remnants of war and got a tower visit. This is the final installment.

I have now flown Air Niugini (airline code: PX) more than most Americans ever will. The thing is, no one I knew remotely well enough at the time worked for the airline, which is rare for me. I did, however, know plenty of people who work for their fiercest competitor – Airlines PNG (airline code: CG).  Clearly, something I needed to take a flight!

After a week of in-country planning, I had finally selected a destination – Goroka, a small town in the highlands of Central PNG. It is one of the highest airports in the country at 5,200 feet. It was also a reasonable airfare and a crew of people who were extremely friendly to an American journalist.

A War Nerd Goes to New Britain + Tower Visit

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A crashed A6M2 Reisen on display at a museum in Kokopo. Photo by Bernie Leighton | AirlineReporter.com

A crashed A6M2 Reisen on display at a museum in Kokopo – Photo: Bernie Leighton | AirlineReporter

This is part of a series about visiting Papua New Guinea.  In part one, Bernie reviewed flying Air Niugini.  In part two, he visited (New) Ireland and (New) Britain via a Q400.  This is part three of four.

There are a lot of things that one can do in New Britain that are typically tourist. You can go to the golf club. There are beaches everywhere. Local markets that aren’t even designed to rip off tourists. Reasonably warm ocean. Think of it like Hawaii before it became a commercialized tourist haven.

The thing is, that kind of tourism bores me. I would not have flown all the way around the world just to go see a new beach. I was actually there because I wanted to see the leftovers from Operation Cartwheel.