New Guinea Challenge - Wewak to Kiruru
The second largest island in the world (after Greenland), New Guinea is one of the most salient components of Oceania. It is located in the southwestern part of the Pacific Ocean, separated from its southerly neighbor, Australia, by the Torres Strait. New Guinea measures roughly 1,500 miles in length by 400 miles at its widest. It is oriented west-northwest–east-southeast, and has a main spine of mountains, the New Guinea Highlands, that run its entire length. These peaks are some of the most rugged and heavily vegetated in the world.
New Guinea is politically divided into two portions of roughly equal area: the eastern half, Papua New Guinea, and Western New Guinea, controlled by Indonesia and often called Indonesian New Guinea. The island has a long history of outside exploration and colonization. Due to its austere, extremely rugged nature, much of New Guinea’s interior has never been developed beyond simple trails and a few dirt airstrips – it remains largely untouched.
The New Guinea Challenge takes aviators into the heart of the most rugged and challenging portion of New Guinea to navigate from the air. The route begins at Wewak, Papua New Guinea, on the island’s northern coast. It then strikes into the interior of the vast island and takes pilots along the highest reaches of the New Guinea Highlands. It ends in Indonesian New Guinea on the island’s southern coast.
Total Legs: 8 Total Distance: 600 Total Time(125kts): 4 hours 48 minutes
Leg 1
Boram to Timbunke Airport
Leg Distance: 37.54 Approximate time at 125kts: 18 minutes.
Boram(AYWK) to Paliama(POI1)
Distance: 6.99NM Bearing: 192° 3 minutes
After lifting off from Wewak Airport on the shore of the Pacific Ocean, set a course to the south-southwest, and follow the corridor of the Wewak-Maprik Road to the village of Paliama. This part of New Guinea is characterized by the Northern New Guinea Lowland Rain and Freshwater Swamp Forest ecoregion.
Paliama(POI1) to Nagam River Mission(POI2)
Distance: 7.8NM Bearing: 193° 4 minutes
Continue on a south-southwestern course over dense forest and carefully search for a dirt track leading to Nagam River Mission, which lies just to the west of the Nagam River.
Nagam River Mission(POI2) to Koiwat(POI3)
Distance: 17.02NM Bearing: 188° 8 minutes
Visually pick up the river corridor that runs to the west of the Nagam River Mission and follow it south to the village of Koiwat. Note the large Sepik River in the distance and large bow to the north, on the banks of which lies the village of Timbunke. Koiwat lies north-northeast of Timbunke and the apex of the river bow.
Koiwat(POI3) to Timbunke Airport(TBE)
Distance: 5.73NM Bearing: 190° 3 minutes
Continue to Timbunke and land at the Timbunke Airport.
Leg 2
Timbunke Airport to Hauna Airstrip
Leg Distance: 78.44 Approximate time at 125kts: 38 minutes.
Timbunke Airport(TBE) to Kapaimeri Mission(POI4)
Distance: 14.76NM Bearing: 264° 7 minutes
After lifting off from Timbunke Airport, set a course to the west and keep to the north of the Sepik River. Visually identify a series of oxbows along the Sepik River and then find Kapaimeri Mission on the northeastern bank of the river just to the northwest of the series of oxbows.
Kapaimeri Mission(POI4) to Chambri Lake(POI5)
Distance: 10.33NM Bearing: 249° 5 minutes
Turn slightly to the south at Kapaimeri Mission and fly over the large, oval-shaped Chambri Lake.
Chambri Lake(POI5) to Ambunti(POI6)
Distance: 17.74NM Bearing: 273° 9 minutes
Set a heading just north of due west and gain a visual on the Sepik River in the western distance. Sight the sharp bend in the river just to the south of a small lake. Ambunti lies just to the west of the apex of the river’s bend.
Ambunti(POI6) to Sepik River(POI7)
Distance: 6.79NM Bearing: 260° 3 minutes
Turn slightly to the south of due west and sight a prominent oxbow lake just to the north of the main Sepik River in the western distance. Pass over the Sepik River just south of the oxbow lake.
Sepik River(POI7) to Swagup(POI8)
Distance: 12.09NM Bearing: 256° 6 minutes
Maintain heading and fly to the south of the corridor of the Sepik River. The village of Swagup lies just to the west of a prominent northern turn in the river.
Swagup(POI8) to Yarmu(YARMU)
Distance: 14.29NM Bearing: 263° 7 minutes
Continue following the corridor of the Sepik River and sight the Wario River to the south of the Sepik. The village of Yarmu lies on the north side of the Sepik River just to the west of where the Wario meets the Sepik.
Yarmu(YARMU) to Hauna Airstrip(AYHQ)
Distance: 2.44NM Bearing: 232° 1 minutes
Turn onto a southwest heading at Yarmu and sight the Hauna Airstrip on a small peninsula surrounded on three sides by a partial oxbow lake on the south side of the Sepik River.