LEG 7: MAJURO, MARSHALL ISLANDS to POHNPEI, MICRONESIA |
Date | Distance (SM) | ATE | Identifier | City |
---|---|---|---|---|
Mon June 10 | 897 | PKMJ - PTPN | Pohnpei, Micronesia |
Dick faxed a report covering this leg and the next; here is a transcript of that part of the fax relating to the leg:
It is 4:35AM, Thursday, June 13th, here in Chuuk, formerly called Truk, in the Federal States of Micronesia. After my last report from Majuro, here is an update. Two-hour delay in leaving Majuro, awaiting clearance to Pohnpei. While enroute, cabin fuel tank was oil canning from differential pressure. A strong odor of Avgas was present. Removing the tank cap stopped the oil canning, but the fuel odor persisted. Enroute weather good, but arrival weather miserable. Heavy rain and 1 to 2 miles visibility. A circling instrument approach from the Northeast was missed because of visibility. A straight-in approach from the West was successful despite heavy rain. After landing, inspection revealed rupture in main cabin tank and fuel saturating the aft cabin. Despite our misfortune, we were able to muster up ???? for the repair. Alex Tretnoff, CEO, Chief Pilot, Chief Mechanic of Caroline Island Air (CIA) organized a crew consisting of ??? of New Zealand, Pilot, "Saint" Peter pilot-mechanic for Pacific Mission Air, and Peter "The Welder" to make necessary repairs. The tanks were removed, welded and reinstalled. Apparently a kink in the vent line was blamed. More ???? vent line was installed replacing the clear plastic hose. Upon filling the tank with fuel, a minuscule leak was discovered. A night overtime job of tank removal, repair weld and installation was accomplished ????. Fuel, no leak. Ready to Go. While Bill and I were waiting for the work to be done, we were met by Master Halbert, Airworthiness Inspector with the FSM Civil Aviation. He assessed the situation and approved the work. He took us to his headquarters to meet the Secretary for Civil Aviation, Waynold Yamaguchi. Waynold asked Master to show us around. We went to Nan Madol, an ancient fortress made of basalt rock. This was the Island King's defense. Very Impressive. That evening, I made a Rotary contact with Vida and Freddie, President and Secretary, respectively, for dinner. We were joined by Rotarians Alison and Ed Kalan. We had a delightful evening. Photos taken. Received an Island Headdress and Club banner.
See next leg log for rest of report. Faxed report is available: Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4.
See Pohnpei pictures below. Captions haven't been received yet, so tentative ones have been added...
Click on pictures for high-resolution version.
Pascal Landi, Manny Higazi | Sunday, June 16, 2002 |