Heading north via the West Coast on Par Avion’s Titan
Almost a year to the day since my last Par Avion flight, to truwana/Cape Barren Island, I had the opportunity to fly with them again, this time on an early morning service to Strahan and on to Launceston.
| Flight Details | |
|---|---|
| Airline | Par Avion/Airlines of Tasmania |
| Aircraft Type | Cessna 404 Titan |
| Registration | VH-CCN |
| Route | Cambridge to Launceston via Strahan |
| Flight Number | FO700/FO702 |
| Date | 13/07/2021 |
Scheduled for a 7am departure, I was up bright and early to check in at Par Avion’s modest terminal at Cambridge half an hour beforehand. The terminal’s indoor space is complimented nicely by a small fenced in grass area outdoors with excellent views of the aerodrome’s operations, though it was too dark and cold to make use of.
The three other passengers, two tourists and an electrician, and I boarded just after 7am, and we taxied out to Runway 30 just as the sun began peeking over the horizon. Climbing out over the city and New Norfolk provided some excellent views before reaching a blanket of cloud that obscured the views for the rest of the flight.
Our approach into Strahan was a little bumpy, and with the cloud cover so low, we didn’t get to see much beyond Strahan and the beach. Landing was pretty smooth, and before long, we were parked up outside Strahan’s tin shed terminal.
During the hour long turnaround I tagged along with the crew as they headed in Strahan for brekkie, although it rained on and off the whole time. The crew were incredibly friendly and happy to answer all of my questions, and really made the flight that bit more awesome, though, embarrassingly, I’ve forgotten their names, so chuck me a message if you’re reading this.
On the leg to Launnie I was the only passenger, so I sat right behind the cockpit, with excellent views of the 404’s somewhat antiquated analogue cockpit. Takeoff wasn’t too bumpy, and I got a few views of Strahan and surrounds as we climbed up into the clouds
Once again, the cloud didn’t break till we were approaching Launceston, though I did get some brief glimpses of Great Lake along the way. The view as we descended in to Launnie was pretty good, and I got a few photos of the runway on approach too.
It was another smooth landing at Launceston, and we had a brief taxi in past QantasLink’s Boeing 717-200 VH-YQW in the Discover Tasmania livery, a fitting conclusion to a pretty great morning.
Overall it was a pretty amazing trip, I had a fantastic time despite the weather and the crew were awesome, I really can’t recommend a flight with Par Avion enough! Don’t forget to subscribe to my Youtube, follow my Insta, and check out my Par Avion airline profile here.