Flying trip to former East Germany

[dppintr2]

It has been months since my last post. Last weekend, to keep up with flying despite the Covid-19, we went to former East Germany. The weather wasn't great on the way there, but on the way back it was fantastic (albeit cold).

The Brocken in the Harz mountain range

A trip report with pictures can be found here

-o-o-

 

[Arrow76R]

Great accounting of your COLD trip!!! Thanks

 

[murphey]

Rene - looking at one of your pages with the mountain passes...have you taken mountain flying class(es) in Europe and/or anywhere else?

 

[David Megginson]

Got your quota of Ostelbisch for the year? Looks like a great trip — thanks for sharing.

 

[murphey]

Thanks for the thumbs up
@murphey; I have not taken mountain flying classes, but I did read up when I started flying in the Alps. Our youngest son is now FI in Switzerland. I plan to go to airports with him I would not otherwise go to, such as Ambri in a narrow valley.

I asked because I was curious about any differences between US and European courses, such as specific topics. Geography plays such a big part on what is emphasized. True, Density altitude is the same everywhere. But there are other topics that aren’t. Flying around the Rockies has many of the same issues as the Appalachians but there are some that are very different.

Just curious.

 

[SCCutler]

Fun post!

 

[David Megginson]

Thanks for the thumbs up
@murphey: I am not an expert. It seems that the mountains of the Rockies are spread over a wider area and that the relative height of the mountains to the base of the mountains is lower than the Alps.
There may be a significant difference in air pressure north of the Alps and south of the Alps that lie close to each other as the crow flies. Very strong winds (Alpine föhn) in those circumstances develop that can be dangerous.

Excellent point! Lake Geneva and Lake Constance (Bodensee), for example, are only between 1,200 ft and 1,300 ft MSL, so the Alps start closer to sea level than the Rockies do. Maybe the (West) Coastal Ranges would be a better comparison in North America.