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(Video) World's shortest commercial flight

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At just over one nautical mile between them, Kegata and Apowo airstrips in Papua, Indonesia are separated by a deep valley making aircraft an ideal mode of transport between the two villages. Take a ride with the locals in the Pilatus PC-6 Turbo Porter on the 73 second flight from Kegata to Apowo. (vimeo.com) More...

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haydenpellegrino
Where do they get the fuel for the flights?
dbaker
dbaker 3
I imagine the airplane isn't used exclusively for this route.
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal -2
Dear friend Hayden Pellegrino, as our friend Daniel Baker has stated , the same bird can fly to nearby filling station(airport) to fill her belly. No ? .
Or in extreme situation, by chopper with special fuel tanks !
:-)
Tigg
In the Air
bill54494
Bill Menzel 5
At 2:00 I love watching the man in back with the black cap praying! He's holding on to the seat back for dear life.
joelwiley
joel wiley 2
I saw that. I thought the walk would have been good for him. Am sure he had his reasons for flying.
plow675984
Peter Low 3
I am afraid that you are wrong. The shortest is between 2 islands in Scotland. See the attached !!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-22668150
LordLayton
Fastest he ever did it was 53 seconds. Shortest SCHEDULED Airline flight. Hell of a way to build up hours lol.
wopri
The shortest commercial flight here in the Province of Quebec is from Montmagny to Île aux Grues. It takes about 3 minutes and is normally flown back and forth three times a day. Morning and afternoon flights replace schoolbuses, so students have priority. The company is called Air Montmagny, their website is in French only.

http://www.airmontmagny.com/index.php/appareils
lboyette
Lloyd Boyette 2
What an incredibly cool blog this guy has. Very inspirational for pilots wanting to do something different.
wopri
The flight between Westray and Papa Westray in the Orkney Islands is longer in distance, but can be done in 47 seconds under ideal wind conditions.

http://www.amusingplanet.com/2013/08/worlds-shortest-commercial-flight-is.html
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 2
Dear friend Wolfgang Prigge, found a link indicating that distance travelled by this flight is 'just over a nautical mile '.
BTW, same VDO .

http://www.shockmansion.com/2013/11/26/video-worlds-shortest-commercial-flight-flying-between-two-villages-in-papua-takes-just-over-one-minute/

Enjoy !
Though I wonder about the cost of ticket ? Vi-a-vis these poor highlanders !
mariescreations
Jerry Rader 1
To use an airplane between the airports in Papua is probably more justified and practical than the one between the Orkney Islands. I wouldn't want to have to travel by foot across that ravine to get to the other side. A boat ride could be made between the islands. As far as the duration goes, under ideal wind conditions the Pilatus might also be able to trim the 73 second flight.
wopri
If the flight in the Orkneys is still going on it must be because there are enough people willing to pay the fare.
joelwiley
joel wiley 1
Looked like there was an elevation difference between Papuas, which must be considered also.
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 1
I guess here we mean 'distance' and not 'duration'.
Right my friend Wolfgang Prigge ?
Plus other 'iffs' added by you !
;-p
wopri
Yes, you are right, as I indicated, the flight in the Orkneys is longer in distance and shorter in duration if the wind conditions are right.
roryg
roryg 2
In the comments, the pilot says that this isn't a regular, scheduled service. Only when there is demand or a charter.
LordLayton
exactly!
djjamar
Jamar Jackson 2
And I complain about the 405. That walk down and up that hill must take half a day
THRUSTT
THRUSTT 1
The 405 is worse than that hill!!!
Av8nut
Michael Fuquay 2
It sure would take a while to rack up some hours.
bpforest
bpforest 1
Shortest flight or not, that Pilatus continues to amaze me. Such capability.

[This poster has been suspended.]

akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 1
You bet my friend James Farnsworth.
All those valleys and mountains .
joelwiley
joel wiley 1
"That which does not kill me makes me stronger" quote by some dead guy.
geocom
George Curtis 1
A bugger to walk between villages so that's why they fly! Great video - thanks.
raymondwatson
raymond watson 1
What no inflight meals,cheapo airline,ha,good vidio though.
joelwiley
joel wiley 2
True, but plenty of time for prayer- check the guy in row 2 at 2:02
Amen Brother
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 1
yeah, no dine , no wine, no dance !
Sad !
:-(
johnashton
john ashton 1
What, 2 seconds faster than Westray to papa Westray in the Scottish Islands but a downhill take off!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwyVWaCAD2A
N47
N47 1
personally I could have done without the sound track
geocom
George Curtis 1
Beautiful landscape but a bugger to walk. That's why tey fly!
flyerh
flyerh 1
Who does the pilot fly for? Not MAF as he is not wearing the mandatory helmet. I am assuming the location is not near the border with Papua, New Guinea, as that is primarily Dani territory and I didn't see anyone wearing penis gourds. Or, did he mean Papua New Guinea and West Papua (formerly Irian Jaya, Indonesia? I'm assuming the location was not along the "Neck of the Bird" as I don't recall any airfields there. (access from Serui across open sea in a dug out canoe) So, is the location near the "Head of the Bird" near Fak Fak? Just interested. I've had to walk for days in dense jungle when a short few minutes flight would get you over the village.
salves522
silas alves 1
Muito bom,gostei ,queria estar neste voo.
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 1
OMG !
What a lovely rendering(VDO)
Rightly(perhaps) the shortest COMMERCIAL flight !
A great pick up dear friend Daniel Baker, thumbs up !
trstpier
Ted St Pierre 1
Could that video have taken any longer to load?
geefore
Ken Heider 1
A little hard to build up any time that way...
ikele76
Has to be hard on that engine can see them making any money on this route lol
gunfitr
Kurt Anderson 1
Sorry, I posted to the wrong site.
gunfitr
Kurt Anderson 1
Let this so called Professor live in Russia, China or North Korea for some years and see if he doesn't change his mind.
Time to go back to grade school Professor.
pnschi
pnschi 1
Thank goodness they didn't violate the law requiring seriously crappy music on Vimeo.
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 1
You can down vote it on Youtube and also give your candid opinion there also .
This may help .
MHO
choice is yours. U R the boss of ur soul .
frankfurt982
andy streit 1
Couldnt get the video to work. Any hints to help me out?
gerstj1
gerstj1 1
Download VLC media player and try again. It is pretty universal.
jagerardi
jagerardi -3
Horrible video. The music sucked, and more to the point, at 73 seconds, why not show the entire flight? Who needs to look at passengers?

..Joe
plow675984
Peter Low 2
Nice to know that you appreciated the video (?). As to "music sucks". Sucks means to draw in through the mouth. Maybe you should try it via your ears ?? Just asking.
k9wrangler
Karl Scribner 0
It would be interesting to see the flight from a ground camera position.
albertarose
sandra miller 0
So cool!
BUT!
How hard would it be to add CC or SDH for those of us who cannot hear talking heads or voices over.
Otherwise, let the adage ''One picture is worth a thousand words'' serve the Hearing just like it must do the Non-Hearing.
Cheers and Ciao for now.
cheneyja
cheneyja 0
very nice video! I should be there doing that!

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