Our plane, sitting on the tarmac at Grand Canyon Airport.
Where it sat for quite some time, while somebody tried to
figure out whatever it was that needed to be done to allow
the pilots to get in and fly us back.
The airport is just outside the park entrance, so the return journey took only a few minutes. Unfortunately, Scenic Airlines were no less disorganised than in Las Vegas.
Our plane, sitting on the tarmac at Grand Canyon Airport.
Where it sat for quite some time, while somebody tried to
figure out whatever it was that needed to be done to allow
the pilots to get in and fly us back.
The view through the cockpit. I was in row 2, and so had
an excellent view. The display scene in the middle is a GPS
receiver. As we were flying at the end of the day, the
flight was quite bumpy - I think even worse than the one out
in the early afternoon.
One advantage of the delayed flight is that we were returning
around sunset, which is usually a more expensive flight!
Nonetheless, I think I would have preferred to be on time.
Another view through the cockpit - showing the glorious sunset
and another plane leaving a vapour trail, albeit a very short
one (about mid image).
A spectacular view of cliffs reflecting the setting sun.
It's not often that I look down on cliffs at sunset.
Another canyon - well, really, I suppose a continuation of
the Grand Canyon just before Lake Mead.
Now crossing Lake Mead - visible from the low water level
leaving a white band around the top of the lake. And what
a spectacular sunset.
Las Vegas in sight. The following photos are quite blurry.
It was getting dark which means longer exposures, and the
flight was quite bumpy.
This photo shows the effect of the plane's bumpy movements
as we were coming in to land. Adjust your mind!
This image used a 1/3rd of a second exposure time - no wonder
it's so blurry!
The strip, seen from the north end. The large white building
on the left is, I believe, the Hilton, and the Stratosphere tower
is on the right.
The Stratosphere is visible again, as is the Hilton.
After the usual confusion at the airport we were back on the bus to the Aladdin. I don't recall anything much else for the rest of this day, but I imagine we found somewhere to eat before turning in for the night. Overall an enjoyable day, but if time is short, I'd advise against using Scenic Airlines.
Grand Canyon Village
North American Tour Home Page