top of page

Chaika Amphibian "Southern Sun" from Samara to Darwin. Via Moscow and London

November, 2019

Many of us might have heard about Michael Smith from Melbourne, Australia. 

Michael flew his “Searey” amphibian around the world back in 2015 and named the journey “The Southern Sun”.You may find details at the beautifully composed page here.

As it turned out it was just the beginning of the story.

Early 2019 Michael has ordered a brand new Chaika L65 SeaBear amphibian at the Russian manufacturer SeaBear in Samara, Russia. The aircraft was ready, tested, flown and registered by November 2019 and it was time to make the final preparations for the new Southern Sun Adventure - from London, UK to Darwin, Australia. 

But the question was how exactly to get out from the factory in Russia and arrive to London?

Various routes were considered with focus on leaving Russian territory via Black Sea and proceeding across Southern Europe to the UK. But when one decides to connect by a direct line the city of Samara and the city of London, it turns out the easiest route goes via Moscow, Belarus and Kaliningrad on the Baltic Sea. 

That was the route which Michael has approved, and in 3 leisurely days after leaving the factory at UWWQ, the Southern Sun has arrived to White Waltham Airfield, West London EGLM. 

There were only three stops along the route - Moscow Myachkovo UUBM, Moscow Orlovka UUTO (check this page for details) and the uttermost western Russian frontier UMKK Kaliningrad. Onwards there was just natural habitat for SeaBear - Baltic Sea and the North Sea.

You may read the full report about the trip from London to Darwin here.

bottom of page