Small plane travel in China | Soaring above the Hulunbuir Grassland Lakes

China has a vast territory, and the distance between cities in several frontier provinces is far greater than that of the eastern coastal cities, so the development of regional aviation and general aviation (navigation) is also extremely rapid. At the end of 2019, I was lucky enough to snatch two general aviation tickets worth one yuan in the eastern Mongolia area during the activities of Air Travel. The scene of flying on the Beech Kingair 350 in the winter in the Daxing’an Mountains snowy forests and seas is still deeply remembered. Therefore, this summer, I went to Hulun Buir again. Naturally, I have to open the air travel to see if there is a more suitable route to experience.

In August 2020, the low-priced general aviation tickets departing from Hailaer (HLD/ZBLA) are mainly in the direction of Xinbaerhu Right Banner (commonly known as West Banner), Arong Banner and Moqi Banner, all of which are only about 100 yuan. My friend and I originally planned to go to Manzhouli, so Xiqi is a good choice. After arriving in Xiqi, it takes only two hours to reach Manzhouli by bus. Arong Banner and Mo Banner are near Zhalantun. You can choose to take the train to Hailar after arriving here. Both flights are operated by Cessna 208b aircraft. There are also flights to Jiagedaqi in the Daxinganling area, which are operated by Kingair350 and are more expensive.

Hailar Airport can be regarded as the closest airport to the city in a prefecture-level city. It is only three kilometers from the urban area to the airport. It only costs 14 yuan to take a taxi from the Hailar River East and the railway station to the airport. At 7:30, Hailar Airport only opened one check-in counter, and the queue of passengers waiting for check-in was very long. Fortunately, General Aviation has a separate counter, and you can go directly to the overweight payment counter next to the first-class counter.

It's a pity that the boarding pass is a standard boarding pass, and the words on it will disappear in a few years. Only one of the economy class passages and one of the first class passages are open for the five security inspection passages, and the queues are still very long. It is hoped that Hailaer Airport, which is the face of Hulunbuir, can make some adjustments and changes.

The weather in Hailar was not good, and it started to rain outside the window after the security check. The larger jets of general aviation aircraft were more affected by weather factors, and the takeoff time was postponed twice. However, for flying friends, it is a happy thing to have a longer time to take pictures in the terminal. That day happened to be the first day that Chongqing Airlines opened the Hohhot=Hairar route, and I was fortunate to see the plane pass through the water gate for the first time (in the rain XD).

At about 10:30 in the morning, the weather improved. After the boarding of the flight to Moqi and Arong Banner, the flight I took to Xiqi finally started to board. Many of the passengers on the three planes looked like locals, and they took the plane back to their hometowns, not my early adopters. As long as the price is reasonable, it can be seen that the development potential of general aviation in Inner Mongolia is still very huge. The passenger capacity of general aviation aircraft is small, and it is obviously not worthwhile to use conventional shuttle buses. Hailar chose to use a business-class minibus with a relatively large and comfortable seat.

The flight has been delayed for nearly two hours, and the staff rushed to the plane after taking a few photos in a hurry. The interior decoration of B-9828 is similar to that of a business jet, with large seats; unlike the Kingair I took last time, the seats are as crowded as a van in the 2000s. Another difference between the two aircraft is that the Cessna can still see the pilot's operation after takeoff, while the Kingair pilot will close the small door between the cockpit and the cabin before taxiing. There are actually four passengers in a plane that can accommodate eight people, presumably the subsidy from the local government is not low. After boarding, the plane took off very quickly. The small plane and the small airport took five minutes to reach the blue sky.

The plane flew over the Hailaer and Ewenki Autonomous Banners and arrived over the grassland. The Hulunbuir grassland in midsummer is more beautiful from the air than it is from the ground, green and endless. After the climb, the aircraft maintained a cruising altitude of 7,000 feet. Passing through the lower clouds, the plane has reached the sky over Hulun Lake, the third largest lake in China. The blue-green Great Lake is like a huge mirror in the green grassland, and it is more magnificent and shocking when viewed from the air than from the satellite map.

Ten minutes later, the plane began to turn and descend. Through the pilot's glass, one could vaguely see Baogede Airport in New Balti Right Banner and Alatan Emole Town, the seat of the banner government. Because it is a general aviation airport, the runway of Baogde Airport is very small, and the plane also stops in a short distance, and the speed of taxiing to the apron is also very fast.

When I booked the air ticket the day before, I was very worried about how to deal with the road from the airport to the city because the arrival airport was a small airport with general aviation and the distance from the city was not very close. Called the airline and the airport several times without any definite information. "There must be a way before the car reaches the mountain." As soon as we got out of the terminal, several elder brothers invited me and my friends to take their car to the town of Alatan Emol.

It was only when we boarded the car that we realized that they were the leaders of the New Balhu Right Banner Government. They happened to see us after dropping off the guests at the airport and took us back to the urban area. How lucky they were! The leaders of the Mongolian nationality were very enthusiastic and introduced the basic situation of many banners to us: the West Banner has a vast area, but its population is only over 40,000, and more than 80% of them are Mongolians... There are three "Baerhu" in Hulunbuir, and the new Barhu right Banner, New Barhu Left Banner and Chen Barhu Banner, whose names come from the Barhu tribe thousands of years ago. The name of Alatan Emol Town, where the Banner Government is located, is a Mongolian transliteration, and its free translation is "golden saddle"... I can't help but sigh, the names in Mongolian are so beautiful! The leader also recommended to us the best hot pot restaurant in the city and the Balhu Museum in the town. As soon as we set foot on this land, we felt the sincere enthusiasm of the Mongolian compatriots and fell in love with it immediately!

Attached:

1. It is worth noting that although this flight is purchased on Latitude, the itinerary will not be displayed on Latitude and needs to be added manually.
2. Xinbalhu Right Banner Baogede Airport (XRQ/ZBXR) cannot be found on the Gaode/Baidu map. It is about 331 National Highway in the southeast corner of Hulun Lake, 20 kilometers away from the urban area; it can be seen on the Google satellite map to detailed location information. The A1-level Baogde General Aviation Airport was put into operation at the end of 2017. The runway is 1,200 meters long and 23 meters wide, and it is 83 kilometers away from the border between China, Russia and Mongolia. The airport is named after it is located next to the Mongolian sacred mountain - Baogedewula Mountain. Every year on the 13th day of the fifth lunar month and the third day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, the herdsmen on the grassland hold a grand folk festival on this mountain.
3. Cessna-208b safety card