An update on recent technical problems and more from the admin: https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/250292/on-technical-difficulties-mod-coverage-and-other-things/p1?new=1
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The Really Long Way [Chat]
Thomamelas
Only one man can kill this many Russians. Bring his guitar to me! Registered User regular
Only one man can kill this many Russians. Bring his guitar to me! Registered User regular
So on December 2, 1941 the California Clipper took off from Treasure Island, California, destination Auckland, New Zealand. The California Clipper was a Boeing 314 which were massive seaplanes with the ability to carry 77 passengers during the day or 36 passengers with sleeping accommodations. And they were at the time, the fastest way to cross the Pacific. The Clipper landed in Pearl Harbor on the 3rd of December and took off again on the 4th. From there it would island hop toward Auckland, stopping in Canton Island, then Fiji, New Caledonia and then finally Auckland.
It was two hours out of Auckland that the California Clipper would receive word that Pearl Harbor had been attacked. Seeking out confirmation, they got the following radio signal from the Pan Am offices in New Caledonia.
PEARL HARBOUR ATTACKED. IMPLEMENT PLAN A.
The Pan Am home office had understood that increased tensions between the US and Japan could possibly lead to war. And it had issued the pilots little brown envelops with contingency plans for this.
The Captain of the plane continued forward to Auckland but with the navigator reworked the remaining flight plan to in case there were Japanese aircraft looking for airplanes on the standard flight path. For the next seven days, the crew of the California Clipper awaited instructions. And finally they came.
The pathway from the US to New Zealand had been carefully scouted, planned and provisioned. Every logistical challenge had been looked at and addressed. From spare parts, to fuel to food and everything in between. Which was very important. The Boeing 314 was a special beast that required 100 octane fuel rather then lower octane fuels more commonly used for civilian aviation. None of that logistical chain and support existed going west from Auckland. The crew didn't even have charts for such a trip. The scoured the local libary for charts, books anything that might describe the navigation ahead of them. From Auckland to LaGuardia would be a 20,869 mile trip for them.
While the pilots and navigator were working on that the rest of the crew was stripping off paint. It was long, slow work but they had managed to complete a fair amount when another urgent message came in. Pan Am was concerned about the safety of it's staff on New Caledonia. The California Clipper would need to make a trip back to pick up the staff there. Which presented a problem. They needed to break down the spare engines stored at Auckland for parts since there wouldn't likely be any along the way. But the time window for that wouldn't allow for that and finishing the paint removal job. So the crew stopped. Leaving the American flag painted her wing in place.
The evacuation went without a problem and they made Gladstone, Australia without an issue. But upon landing they learned there wasn't a drop of 100 octane fuel to be had. The decision was made to press on to Darwin and hope they would be able to find fuel there. But they would be near the limits of their fuel. And it was a trip over land. In an airplane without landing gear, this wasn't a comforting fact to the crew. If anything went wrong it would be a hard landing going in.
Upon landing safely in Darwin they learned their timing was awful. Darwin had been hit with a Japanese air raid, leading to fears of invasion. This was combined with the first shipment of beer in months to Darwin. The city was a mess. But they managed to find and transfer 4,000 gallons of fuel by jerry can. Getting it onto a boat, ferrying it out to the plane and then by can pouring it into the fuel tanks. 17,235 miles left on their trip.
They took off for Surabaya in the Dutch East Indies. Surabaya had been under constant attack by the Japanese. The air base there being slowly whittled down by escort fighters and the bombers themselves. They were a bit on edge when reports came in of an unknown large aircraft flying a flight path to take it to Surabaya. Interceptors were sent up. The pilots there were edgy from fatigue and fear. The crew of the California Clipper could see the fighters heading toward them. But they had no knowledge of what frequencies to contact them on. Nor could they recognize whose fighters they were. They had no idea if the base at Surabaya had fallen or if it was Japanese aircraft approaching.
They continued on their course. Hoping that if they looked friendly and harmless. The Dutch pilot thought it was a Japanese aircraft and requested permission to shoot it down. Thankfully the base commander requested a closer look in which the American Flag on the wing was spotted. Orders not to fire were given and the California Clipper landed. Upon landing they saw a boat go out partway to greet them. Confused they taxied in closer, inside the break water. Where they were informed that the area they landed in was heavily mined, and that they were lucky to make it to the breakwater without incident. Unfortunately the Dutch had no 100 octane fuel to spare. All they could give the Clipper was 90 octane. No one had ever even tried to fly it with 90 octane gas and no one knew how the engines would react to it.
The concern was pre-detonation and backfires. Both of which would reduce power and potentially harm the engine. But staying at Surabaya wasn't an option. It was under daily air raids and the Boeing 314 was a massive target. It was decided to move the remaining 100 octane fuel in to the main tanks and use it for take offs and landings. They planned their route from Surabaya to Trincomalee in Sri Lanka and when they took off they had 15,951 miles to home.
It didn't take long before they started having problems. The pre-detonation was making the engines run hot. And the backfires were limiting how lean they could run the engine. It was putting tremendous wear and tear on them but the finally found a mixture that would work. The pilots had concerns of their own. They had only the most rudimentary charts to plan this with, and they were flying over water. It would be very easy for them to miss the island. To get below the cloud cover they had to drop to 300 ft above sea level. They continued along this way for a bit until the co-pilot believed he saw a whale. Which turned out to have the Rising Sun painted on the Conn tower. Making it less of a whale and more of a Japanese sub with a crew on desk. As the California Clipper pulled up into a climb, they could see flashes from the ships deck gun attempting to bring them down.
They made it safely to Trincomalee where the British were incredibly helpful about everything. Except believing that civilian pilots could tell the difference between a submarine and the sea. But other then that, the British were very helpful. And they had the precious, precious 100 octane fuel to spare. There was some concern about mixing them. A concern that was justified. The number 3 engine blew up an hour out of Trincomalee. The Clipper was forced to turn around and spend Christmas Eve in Trincomalee. But with the RAF's assistance the engine was rebuilt. And on Christmas Day the California Clipper continued the wrong way home. Only 13518 miles to go.
The flight to Karachi was uneventful, leaving them with 12053 miles to go. From there they went to Bahrain, leaving them 11027 miles left on their journey. But in Bahrain they had to mix 90 octane and 100 octane fuel. Khartoum found them on the Nile. And the Nile presented a challenge. The normal channel on the Nile wasn't long enough for the Clipper to take off with a full load of fuel. They had to scout out a different section. But the RAF there had the proper charts. They had the maps they needed for the next leg of their journey to Leopoldville. 9,647 miles till they reached America. But during take off the number 1 engine lost part of it's exhaust stack. The engine continued to function but the odds of the a fire starting jumped significantly.
Leopoldville was home to a Pan Am station. But it didn't have the spare parts needed, but it did have the proper fuel. But it also presented a challenge. It was 3,480 miles to get to Natal, Brazil. The closest reasonable point where they could cross the Atlantic. But the Boeing 314 had a max range of 3,600 miles. They could overload on fuel but that had other risks. The Pan Am location in Leopoldville was close to the gorges on the Congo river. Too much weight and they couldn't take off in time. But it was decided to try it. To push the plane and try to get up in the air. The Boeing 314 was rated for 90 seconds of max power for take off. The crew found themselves counting up. Engines redlined as 90 seconds came and went. But still the plane didn't lift off. Finally, just before the gorges, the plane shook off the river. Lifting up into the air. But without the ground effect, the plane dove down into the gorge. 120 seconds past. 140 seconds past and they began to climb up again.
But a curve in the rocky gorge approached and they Captain knew they wouldn't clear it in time. They prepared to try to turn with it but the controls were unresponsive. The extra fuel in the wings were trapping the control cables and pinning them in place. The pliots were left with just rudder controls and the managed to make the turn in time. Lifting up and over the rock walls. The engines had been rated for 90 seconds. They had just completed 180 seconds. 7,833 miles to go.
The flight to Natal passed mostly uneventfully. 20 hours of flight between two crews and they landed with 2 hours of fuel left. From there the rest of the journey was uneventful until they approached LaGuardia they radioed the tower at 6 am. And were promptly informed that the seaplane channel wouldn't be open for another hour and they would need to circle. Then finally at 7 am, on January 6th, the California Clipper landed. Having accomplished the first circumnavigation of the world by a commercial airline.
It was two hours out of Auckland that the California Clipper would receive word that Pearl Harbor had been attacked. Seeking out confirmation, they got the following radio signal from the Pan Am offices in New Caledonia.
PEARL HARBOUR ATTACKED. IMPLEMENT PLAN A.
The Pan Am home office had understood that increased tensions between the US and Japan could possibly lead to war. And it had issued the pilots little brown envelops with contingency plans for this.
To: Captain, PAA Flight 6039 – SFO-LAX-HNL-CIS-SUV-NOU-AUK and return flight 6040.
From: Division Manager, Pacific Division
Subject: Special instructions to avoid hostile military activity.
Pan American Airways, in cooperation with the Chief of Staff, United States Army, Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Fleet Operations, the Secretary of War and the Secretary of State, has agreed to place its fleet of flying boats at the disposal of the military for whatever logistical or tactical purpose they may deem necessary at such time as hostilities break out between the United States forces and the military forces of the Imperial Japanese government.
In the event that you are required to open and read these instructions, you may assume that hostilities have already occurred and that the aircraft under your command represents a strategic military resource which must be protected and secured from falling into enemy hands
The Captain of the plane continued forward to Auckland but with the navigator reworked the remaining flight plan to in case there were Japanese aircraft looking for airplanes on the standard flight path. For the next seven days, the crew of the California Clipper awaited instructions. And finally they came.
Security: Top Secret
To: Captain Robert Ford
From: Chief, Flight Operations Pan American Airways System Chrysler Building New York City, NY
Subject: Diversion plans for NC18602
Normal return route cancelled. Proceed as follows:
Strip all company markings, registration numbers, and identifiable insignia from exterior surfaces. Proceed westbound soonest your discretion to avoid hostilities and deliver NC18602 to Marine Terminal LaGuardia Field New York.
Good Luck
The pathway from the US to New Zealand had been carefully scouted, planned and provisioned. Every logistical challenge had been looked at and addressed. From spare parts, to fuel to food and everything in between. Which was very important. The Boeing 314 was a special beast that required 100 octane fuel rather then lower octane fuels more commonly used for civilian aviation. None of that logistical chain and support existed going west from Auckland. The crew didn't even have charts for such a trip. The scoured the local libary for charts, books anything that might describe the navigation ahead of them. From Auckland to LaGuardia would be a 20,869 mile trip for them.
While the pilots and navigator were working on that the rest of the crew was stripping off paint. It was long, slow work but they had managed to complete a fair amount when another urgent message came in. Pan Am was concerned about the safety of it's staff on New Caledonia. The California Clipper would need to make a trip back to pick up the staff there. Which presented a problem. They needed to break down the spare engines stored at Auckland for parts since there wouldn't likely be any along the way. But the time window for that wouldn't allow for that and finishing the paint removal job. So the crew stopped. Leaving the American flag painted her wing in place.
The evacuation went without a problem and they made Gladstone, Australia without an issue. But upon landing they learned there wasn't a drop of 100 octane fuel to be had. The decision was made to press on to Darwin and hope they would be able to find fuel there. But they would be near the limits of their fuel. And it was a trip over land. In an airplane without landing gear, this wasn't a comforting fact to the crew. If anything went wrong it would be a hard landing going in.
Upon landing safely in Darwin they learned their timing was awful. Darwin had been hit with a Japanese air raid, leading to fears of invasion. This was combined with the first shipment of beer in months to Darwin. The city was a mess. But they managed to find and transfer 4,000 gallons of fuel by jerry can. Getting it onto a boat, ferrying it out to the plane and then by can pouring it into the fuel tanks. 17,235 miles left on their trip.
They took off for Surabaya in the Dutch East Indies. Surabaya had been under constant attack by the Japanese. The air base there being slowly whittled down by escort fighters and the bombers themselves. They were a bit on edge when reports came in of an unknown large aircraft flying a flight path to take it to Surabaya. Interceptors were sent up. The pilots there were edgy from fatigue and fear. The crew of the California Clipper could see the fighters heading toward them. But they had no knowledge of what frequencies to contact them on. Nor could they recognize whose fighters they were. They had no idea if the base at Surabaya had fallen or if it was Japanese aircraft approaching.
They continued on their course. Hoping that if they looked friendly and harmless. The Dutch pilot thought it was a Japanese aircraft and requested permission to shoot it down. Thankfully the base commander requested a closer look in which the American Flag on the wing was spotted. Orders not to fire were given and the California Clipper landed. Upon landing they saw a boat go out partway to greet them. Confused they taxied in closer, inside the break water. Where they were informed that the area they landed in was heavily mined, and that they were lucky to make it to the breakwater without incident. Unfortunately the Dutch had no 100 octane fuel to spare. All they could give the Clipper was 90 octane. No one had ever even tried to fly it with 90 octane gas and no one knew how the engines would react to it.
The concern was pre-detonation and backfires. Both of which would reduce power and potentially harm the engine. But staying at Surabaya wasn't an option. It was under daily air raids and the Boeing 314 was a massive target. It was decided to move the remaining 100 octane fuel in to the main tanks and use it for take offs and landings. They planned their route from Surabaya to Trincomalee in Sri Lanka and when they took off they had 15,951 miles to home.
It didn't take long before they started having problems. The pre-detonation was making the engines run hot. And the backfires were limiting how lean they could run the engine. It was putting tremendous wear and tear on them but the finally found a mixture that would work. The pilots had concerns of their own. They had only the most rudimentary charts to plan this with, and they were flying over water. It would be very easy for them to miss the island. To get below the cloud cover they had to drop to 300 ft above sea level. They continued along this way for a bit until the co-pilot believed he saw a whale. Which turned out to have the Rising Sun painted on the Conn tower. Making it less of a whale and more of a Japanese sub with a crew on desk. As the California Clipper pulled up into a climb, they could see flashes from the ships deck gun attempting to bring them down.
They made it safely to Trincomalee where the British were incredibly helpful about everything. Except believing that civilian pilots could tell the difference between a submarine and the sea. But other then that, the British were very helpful. And they had the precious, precious 100 octane fuel to spare. There was some concern about mixing them. A concern that was justified. The number 3 engine blew up an hour out of Trincomalee. The Clipper was forced to turn around and spend Christmas Eve in Trincomalee. But with the RAF's assistance the engine was rebuilt. And on Christmas Day the California Clipper continued the wrong way home. Only 13518 miles to go.
The flight to Karachi was uneventful, leaving them with 12053 miles to go. From there they went to Bahrain, leaving them 11027 miles left on their journey. But in Bahrain they had to mix 90 octane and 100 octane fuel. Khartoum found them on the Nile. And the Nile presented a challenge. The normal channel on the Nile wasn't long enough for the Clipper to take off with a full load of fuel. They had to scout out a different section. But the RAF there had the proper charts. They had the maps they needed for the next leg of their journey to Leopoldville. 9,647 miles till they reached America. But during take off the number 1 engine lost part of it's exhaust stack. The engine continued to function but the odds of the a fire starting jumped significantly.
Leopoldville was home to a Pan Am station. But it didn't have the spare parts needed, but it did have the proper fuel. But it also presented a challenge. It was 3,480 miles to get to Natal, Brazil. The closest reasonable point where they could cross the Atlantic. But the Boeing 314 had a max range of 3,600 miles. They could overload on fuel but that had other risks. The Pan Am location in Leopoldville was close to the gorges on the Congo river. Too much weight and they couldn't take off in time. But it was decided to try it. To push the plane and try to get up in the air. The Boeing 314 was rated for 90 seconds of max power for take off. The crew found themselves counting up. Engines redlined as 90 seconds came and went. But still the plane didn't lift off. Finally, just before the gorges, the plane shook off the river. Lifting up into the air. But without the ground effect, the plane dove down into the gorge. 120 seconds past. 140 seconds past and they began to climb up again.
But a curve in the rocky gorge approached and they Captain knew they wouldn't clear it in time. They prepared to try to turn with it but the controls were unresponsive. The extra fuel in the wings were trapping the control cables and pinning them in place. The pliots were left with just rudder controls and the managed to make the turn in time. Lifting up and over the rock walls. The engines had been rated for 90 seconds. They had just completed 180 seconds. 7,833 miles to go.
The flight to Natal passed mostly uneventfully. 20 hours of flight between two crews and they landed with 2 hours of fuel left. From there the rest of the journey was uneventful until they approached LaGuardia they radioed the tower at 6 am. And were promptly informed that the seaplane channel wouldn't be open for another hour and they would need to circle. Then finally at 7 am, on January 6th, the California Clipper landed. Having accomplished the first circumnavigation of the world by a commercial airline.
+25
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Posts
All hail the new [chat].
NNID: Hakkekage
Mentioning fast this chat was here in record time.
There's always next time. or post page 100.
I've a better gift
THOM
NNID: Hakkekage
his spider sense was tingling so he used his golden lasso to
i am a fan of every one of these autocorrects
*Procrastinates emptying old car*
um
I disagree?
Have you noticed you never see Flex Mentallo and Jacob in the same room at the same time?
chuck e cheese and the rest of big fun have been running roughshod over our rights
which is one oddly specific
and also incorrect it was exactly 1749
and then i looked at the lady who makes this techno
and i was like oh
Let us not speak of the forbidden numbers.
The fox condemns the trap not himself.
i am a proud save scummer and i make no apologizes for how i play games
His genetic take over of the PA Forums continues?
yup
she's awesome and also legowelt's gf
Did you know it is impossible to save scum on the PS4 version of Final Fantasy X?
oh! I see the confusion
you see, I fail in real life CONSTANTLY so
yeah I pretty much wanna break a game's will to live
I always love Thomamelas OPs
My high school only has one person who handles background check requests and she's out sick today.
OMG pls
I just want to quit my job you're killing me.
fuck up once and you break your thumb / if you're happy at all then you're god damn dumb
that's right we're on a fucked up cruise / God is dead but at least we have booze
bad things happen, no one knows why / the sun burns out and everyone dies
it's the quiverful movement
thankfully ive been working to counteract this with my own stock
I am curious, do you play all games on the easiest difficulty as well?
i did not, nor was it likely i ever would have found out, but duly noted
quiverfull.exe
nah medium or hard depending on the genre
but if your goal is personal growth there are probably better things than video games