PROFESSIONAL Pilot Gets LOST in the Mountains

[@ronsmith4480]

Not once in my 27 years as a Navy Aviator or my 25 years as 91 pilot of an individual have I had to spot a dirt road or a Highway to navigate. Hats off Ryan. Specular flying.

[@wayne9638]

Hats off to these guys,amazing stuff

[@chriskreider7926]

Ifr....I follow roads

[@janegiffould1253]

Some years ago, flying in flat UK with a PPL in my righthand seat, the weather closed in rapidly. I was just below cloud and could see below, rhs could only see cloud. No GPS. He was having a wobbly and asked why we were weaving. I explained we were following the A12 which bends. Also explained that I was turning left and knew what I was doing as I had driven that the previous day. Much better to have someone like Brad in rhs.

[@petermerriam1389]

Excellent flight. I totally was transported back to PNG in the late 80’s when we didn’t have the equipment you have now. The pilotage was still excellent!!

[@olddogg60]

This was a great flight to show how challenging bush flying can be. 👍😊

[@kennethperian4370]

Great job landing again Ryan, great flying skills have a great one see ya time see ya bye.

[@shoop4040]

Man that was stressful just to watch - and then to land on to the strip of land WOW! In credible

[@selinalavanya9556]

Though you lost, you didn't panic. Both of you were cool. I think that was a stressful one. Presence of mind is so important in such situations, which you showed us. All the best, Ryan and Brad!!

[@carlospaniagua1001]

These reminded me of a flight in a 182, lost the signal of the 2 GPS on the plane, flying VFR on top and had to Dead Reckon all the way to dest 😂, the worst part was when i got to pass a Sierra on to a Lake and deciding on my time when to start my descent....it was a nice throwback to my student phase, and this my friends was a lesson learned, to not rely solely on GPS and keep my antique piloting skills up to date haha! Great vid as always Ryan 🤜

[@outofhere7623]

Extremely professional to admit a mistake was made and not trying to save face. Good message to up and coming pilots.

[@mistermikeanson]

So difficult when you can't stop and ask someone for directions! The terrain, rivers, trees and valleys always look so beautiful from the sky.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

yes they also all look the same from thy sky

[@wayne9638]

That was hectic and brought back memories of my nav work, great stuff that's really next level flying in that environment

[@jameshopkins1919]

That was intense. Some serious navigation skills shown there - and proof that you really need both good personal navigation skills and instruments like G1000.

[@wantrifu_lite]

Hi Ryan, Great flight. Love your Vlog...its like flying with you everytime enjoying every moment of specular remoteness and beauty of PNG.

[@desjanwirges8397]

A friend who flew small aircraft in PNG during the 60's would have enjoyed this - thanks for the ride

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@rnzoli]

Oh, that sinking feeling when you realize that you got lost :D I felt for you! But it's important to realize this quickly. Especially with poor or intermittent visibility of landmarks, it is not so unusual. Once I picked up the wrong highway, that I expected to lead to our home base. Well, I nearly busted the control zone (CT) of our large international airport instead, I was withing 800 meters of its boundary, converging.... :D This happened after a tiring flight, winter afternoon, mist creeping in, high cloud cover, low-angle lighting from the setting sun.... perfect recipe. What I learnt from that event: I must verify the direction of the road by compass. The wrong road was like 15-20 degrees to the right to the one I needed, and a quick glance at estimating it's direction would have alerted me that it looks very similar, but it's a different one from what I need. . Then I learnt on my commercial training that no matter what, even in great VMC, I turn on all available gadgets (GPS, navaids) and keep them in my scan and situational awareness. This served me quite well ever since.

[@graemeburke4955]

Thrilling! Cool heads in a very challenging VFR environment.

[@UAPology]

Amazing, just amazing! Your skills as a bush pilot are unparalleled..

[@iang.8601]

Ryan & Brad, another great flight, brought back memories of our flights from Hagen to Lae back in the 8O's, following the highway was the way to go.We just had to keep away from the rocks in the clouds

[@ursmuller3704]

Awesome flight to Dinangat with a lot of suspense on the way, challenging the clouds. Following the roads can be tricky at times. I liked the appoach and especially the masterly landing at Dinangat. Thanks Ryan and Brad. God bless!

[@raptureangel5409]

So interesting! My brother has his pilot's license, lots of fun! GREAT FLIGHT!

[@chucksadler4029]

Great video! I love the variety you have in your posts and the depth you go into to describe and explain every aspect of the flight! I'm sure flying in PNG can be very disorienting as much of the terrain look very similar!

[@Breenild]

Very stunning and exciting flight! Now you can imagine, how comfortable we are nowadays with our navigational equipment compared to the old times, where no GPS or even VOR/NDB was available! That were difficult times!

[@flynfishak]

Love these types of IFR flights. Road to river to (in my case) railroad and turn at the next crossing, go up the river valley 6 miles. The IFR flying with instruments is simply annoying. :-D Good flight and good resource management.

[@FlorianNuernberg]

You know its gonna be a good flight, if YOU have to give the tower the QNH, because of its faulty equipment.

[@wongowonga]

That's the most stressed I have seen you. One of those hot and bothered moments! Nice work.

[@Pooneil1984]

You guys were having a great time. The most fun vid yet. 😎

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

It actually was a lot of fun for me. I love flying in that type of weather

[@Pooneil1984]

​@@MissionaryBushPilot A chance to step out of routine and stretch your skills is always fun in any endeavor.

[@jackreeves3001]

The definition of Bush flying. Take care and be blessed. Thanks for sharing your time! KANSAS USA!

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

Thanks for watching!

[@humanbeing8338]

So....what do we have here! One good bloody instructor and one good bloody pilot trainee! Its good to see the communication between the two of you! Brad is learning so much from you and he's a good pilot too!

[@cujo6970]

Flying through clouds and valleys, dodging mountains and trying to follow roads. I'm surprised this kind of thing doesn't happen more often. Shows the skills of Ryan and the importance of staying calm while problem solving. Another amazing video.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

glad you enjoyed it

[@lancevanceandfriends7091]

Awesome landing mate , I’m a student pilot and there’s no way I could stick that so smoothly haha

[@armandovianaavo6518]

Great experience, merci for sharing, cheers from suisse

[@marilynwhite2155]

Fantastic video guys. You two should be training some of those big airline pilots in some of the "incident and crash" videos I also watch. Their lack of communication and flightt skills have been atrocious. Stay safe guys . You are superb.

[@ChrisOstermann]

Man I loved this. I'm just a simer but showing the interaction with the G1000 and how you went from "I don't know where the heck I am" to dialing in your track and approach was absolutely fascinating. Thanks for doing what you do.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@steveb1739]

Brad: "The highway is underneath us". Clearly an IFR flight. I follow roads. Did plenty of that in South Africa in the 80's 🙂

[@wolfgangpreier9160]

They had roads in ZA in the 80s? Interesting history tidbit.

[@steveb1739]

@@wolfgangpreier9160 Indeed yes! The "Concrete Freeway" around JHB had 4 lanes each way in places. It was always congested at rush hour. Now in places there are 7 lanes each way. Still congested! The freeway and national route system in SA is not bad. Just poorly maintained in some parts. The rural roads have reverted to dirt tracks in many places, again owing to zero maintenance.

[@wolfgangpreier9160]

@@steveb1739 "The rural roads have reverted to dirt tracks in many places, again owing to zero maintenance" Yes that's what i meant. In the 1980s many roads here in central Europe were dirt roads or gravel at the best of times and mud tracks at the worst and flattened by tanks in the time of war and decades after. Just as in the Ukraine now. Today our roads are clean, many of them pristine, well maintained and one of the assets of every village. The second is water and irrigation. The third will become solar power in the future. Most important is who has the nicest flower arrangements. But local pubs, inns, cafes, petrol stations and grocery stores shut down everywhere. They have become too expensive to maintain. Of course only in the rural areas where i live. Not in the big cities.

[@soundofheartrelaxation652]

Beautiful flight 👍👍👍👏👏👏👏👏Thank you for sharing 👍 👏 👏 👏

[@kengreaves]

Thanks Ryan warts and all great little vid can't wait for the next one.

[@mrsaskriders]

Man that looks intense. Good job.

[@zzzsydneyhom1379]

Well that would have been a Code Brown for me! Nice work!

[@kam70111]

Exciting. Thank you, Ryan, for the ride.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

You bet!

[@russellclement2058]

I've watched many of your vids and every time you set down its as smooth as silk , Every time I've flown Manila to Ozamiz its as rough as guts , 🙂

[@zippymax1]

In times like these, it must be nice to be in PNG. You couldn't get further away from all this current insanity.

[@brodricj3023]

Be careful what you wish for! Sometimes when in PNG you wish you weren't. And remember, COVID is rampant in PNG, even in the remote villages so the insanity is very much in your face. I have no wish to join that party.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

I would say Covid is spreading 10x faster here in PNG because the people are not scared of it, and everyone just hangs out together outside. It's spread like Wildfire!

[@malekodesouza7255]

Covid is the least of my current concerns. I worry more about WW3.

[@cdmajesty4803]

@@MissionaryBushPilot no fear. Good for them!

[@MamaMia84oo7]

This is absolutely terrifying

[@godngunclinger]

very cool😁👍👍two thumbs up ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐and five out of five stars

[@michaeless882]

I would imagine you're familiarised with a few way-points (hydro-electric dam, Mt Helwig, Ramu Sugar). I really enjoyed that quite challenging. You'd probably be aware, the little triangle of Salamaua to South New Britain to Rai Coast get the ASIAN monsoon -- as opposed to the rest of PNG which get the Australian monsoon so lousy conditions in the south often equate to nice conditions in MAMOSE/ NGI.

[@lanceghill]

Highly interesting. You handled it supremely well.

[@markbarrett7520]

Dinangat is a gorgeous area of PNG. Enjoyed following the Highlands highway over Numonohi to Kundiawa. VFR pilotage looks to be difficult for sure with all the dense clouds. Very intense flight today. I'm glad the weather cooperated enough to get into the airstrip. Thanks Ryan and Brad.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@adventureswithducky4088]

I don't know where we are but there's no sense being late ............ and then that landing strip just sort of perched there .......... Nice Job!

[@waynehurtig8198]

GREAT JOB LOVE WATCING YOU FLY

[@dougbourdo2589]

Amazing. I am sure that was frustrating. Very well done though.

[@michaelherriott9230]

Great flight you two first class video it is always good to watch you find your way, and very challenging bush flying keep up the good flights and keep well from Mike from Yeovil somerset uk

[@christianwolstencroft3431]

Took a lot of guts to post that video... 😂.. pilots never get lost.. they're just uncertain as to their position..!! Good piloting, admirable humility 👍

[@MrNice-gw5dt]

awesome flight!

[@NathanElcoate]

Amazing stuff. Well done you two 👍

[@Jamesbound407]

great landing

[@sandybanjo]

Thanks!

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

Thank you. Glad you enjoyed it

[@michaelscott4766]

Another great video, Stephen King should get credit for the screenplay. What a thriller !

[@amanontheland7892]

Great flight guy's.

[@malcolmcox7200]

IFR = I Follow Roads! Challenging conditions. It can get like that in NZ quite a bit. You get a glimpse of half a hill or a river or part of a town and try to make sense of where you are. It's too easy to rely on GPS so good practice going old school.

[@robfive2555]

Good video. . Cheers Ryan

[@travisp224]

THERE THEY ARE!

[@smaviation]

Good way to spot them 😂

[@fredjones4777]

Steam guages and paper maps in the 70s, great flight

[@ssnerd583]

I have been 'lost' like that and had the clouds open up and BAM!! knew exactly where I was by the landmark revealed below......could have heard the sigh of relief on the ground below me....lol

[@stevemayfield9476]

Well that was a good one lads. Just shows how easy it can be to rely on the G1000 and how it can go awry very quickly with conditions in PNG, esp when only partial VFR is available like you had. Most enjoyable Ryan.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

yes, the GPS only goes so far when dealing with weather. That particular day was cloudy, but not bad weather. Throw some thunderstorms and isolated rain showers with clouds, then....the GPS only shows you your destination, but not how to actually get there safely.

[@wiltonsmith3397]

Hey….. what are those mountain goats doing up in these clouds…?

[@y_equals_mx_plus_c]

Must say, the terrain you're flying over is all pretty much the same, no very distinct features like cities and that, it would be difficult to navigate visually. Mind you as a student, I have been lost on the taxiways before so.....

[@brodricj3023]

What can also compound difficulties is places marked on the map are not where they are so marked. They can pack up a whole village and move it somewhere else. I've seen that a few times before, landed at X marks the spot on the map to discover the village was moved 10 years ago and is now 5 miles away.

[@ivopiscevic]

that was intense

[@lotsabirds]

Like being in a round room, looking for a corner!

[@kingfisch]

Great flight!🙏🙏

[@sthomas6369]

There's a shack of some sort on short final, 30:11 in the video, that looks like its hanging on the side of the cliff! Must be an interesting place...

[@yan.l.1092]

For your information you can insert waypoint on your garmin system. please check the user manual

[@peterfrenzel1826]

OMG....if Ryan doesn't know then we are in bigggggg trouble. I would have jumped out miles ago (thanks to trevor I always carry a parachute now lol)

[@wolfgangpreier9160]

You too? I would love to order one for my car. I could bail out anytime a bat tries to snatch me while driving home in the night. But there is none that fits.

[@erlendedvardsen7790]

God teamwork ✈️👍👌

[@alexandermenzies9954]

I think Brad enjoyed that flight :-).

[@helibob2367]

Heck, I can get that lost on a clear day! 😂

[@BruceHoult]

Great example of IFR in PNG -- I Follow Roads.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

unfortunately roads look alike

[@tradjazzer]

great video, thanks

[@aalexanderkelly]

Mk1 eyeball - there’s no substitute!

[@garyklingler5553]

Welcome to my daily world in the 70's with JAARS in PNG.

[@jtveg]

Thank heavens for modern technology and GPS. 🗺 🛰 🛩

[@Raging.Geekazoid]

_"These are not the ridges you're looking for."_

[@MaShcode]

Ryan has his Capt Willard moment…

[@hepgeoff]

This was a fun video to watch! Different from your normal posts. I never thought you could get lost with al your instruments. I know you love to fly, but flights like this seem like it could be physically and mentally exhausting when you go home at the end of the day.

[@stevekirk8546]

That was the point - turn the instruments off and see how easy it is to get lost. Ryan doesn't get lost but has shown that whilst the G1000 is a brilliant tool in PNG it's not the answer to everything. Technically I guess it would be possible to program an autopilot to land at Dinangat. I wouldn't hold my breath - flying so close to the terrain is organic rather than technical.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

yes, it can be VERY exhausting when dealing with bad weather and no good instrument procedures

[@fevengr9245]

Ryan: That was a little tense for me when you sort of lost situational awareness in that unforgiving terrain. Glad you have TAWS as a safety net, but still. You might consider entering a series of user created waypoints corresponding to your frequently used visual reference points for situations like this. I checked with a Garmin engineer (also my cousin) if user created waypoints would be displayed on the map if they weren’t included in the current active flight plan and she said they would. She also said that there was a selection in the MFD settings to retain those waypoints after power down. Hope this helps.

[@stevekirk8546]

The purpose of this exercise was to introduce Brad to finding the way without the G1000. The unexpected low level cloud made it more challenging than expected but the Goroka valley is wide and they were flying at a safe altitude. It certainly demonstrated the difficulties of following roads and rivers. The Finnesterre Range is altogether more challenging in those conditions hence the return to the G1000.

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

yes, we actually have a few hundred user waypoints. The point of this flight was to no use the GPS, and start using the terrain as reference points so that when weather gets bad, and we are trying to get into Goroka on a MVFR day, we remember specific things about terrain that helps us navigate when the GPS doesn't do much for us because we can't always just fly in a straight line.

[@fevengr9245]

@@MissionaryBushPilot Your mission to these people who so deeply appreciate the difference you make in their lives is such a blessing. Just stay safe and try not to get lost, ok?

[@sunzeneise]

I recall happening to read a map warning not to fly up western US canyons, because the slope of the canyon may exceed one’s rate of climb.😱

[@blacknass1943]

very Nice !

[@patrickheavirland3599]

Hello from Minnesota USA! Someone once asked Daniel Boone if he'd ever been lost and he said I've never been lost but I've been turned around for a couple of weeks.😄😄

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

Well said!

[@paulswart4265]

That was really funny! Somehow I expected you would trust on instruments.....

[@MissionaryBushPilot]

For the purpose of this training flight, we didn't want to use the GPS. Anyone can fly a magenta line, but when weather gets bad, and you can't just fly in a straight line, you need to know how, and also feel comfortable, flying around bad weather.

[@jacksonmacd]

@@MissionaryBushPilot I wondered why you didn't use gps. Thanks for the clarification.

[@johnbrown-rm8kc]

awesome video

[@paullelys161]

Just noticed the "No Farting" sign, LOL.

[@waldoinaz]

I checked FlightAware. You were over Papau New Guinea.

[@ronhatcher7734]

challenging indeed....well done though

[@gooptroop124]

Hey Ryan, looks like you're sporting a Faro Air in-ear headset. Have you tried the Bose A20 or the David Clark Pro-x2? Do you recommend the in-ear? I"m looking to upgrade from a DC H10 to a better quality headset.

[@marilynwhite2155]

Oh yes I do know you are back in America and looking to buy yourself a small plane- loved your vid at Oshkosh

[@domle3096]

does someone know the thechnical side off this airplane? i dint understand how u can bring back the rpm without loosing torque thanks for answersx

[@smaviation]

Highway? Not exactly the 405😀 heading and time boys, heading and time

[@sandybanjo]

Happens to all of us pilots!!!!!

[@bobinthewest]

I saw you on flight radar 24 today

[@boydw1]

IFR bush flying - I Follow Roads, I Follow Rivers...

[@tednowak3112]

Wow...what a flying spooky experience, good job....I rather get lost on the CA freeways and find a Starbucks cofee place.....as I say.........but the Pilots......................

[@frobozz55]

A very interesting video. I wonder, though. It seems like you're only using an assumed ground track to compare with your chart. Can't you also use time and distance? Say, by marking an "X" at the last known location, along with the time you were at that location. If you had a ruler with your distance traveled per minute at an assumed ground speed, then you would be aware of the additional distance you were traveling while still trying to find another known location.