Crossing The Southern Andes From Argentina To Chile
The Kodiak made its first trip from Buenos Aires to Argentina with an extra tour of Patagonia.
South America
This spring, the Kodiak team took the long way to get to the FIDAE airshow in Chile. Starting in Buenos Aires, we took the Kodiak to a series of remote grassy strips in Argentina. Then came the big hop over the Andes at FL250, a four and half hour endurance flight with six people onboard. Our goal was Santiago, Chile.
The views of both the Argentine and Chilean side of Patagonia were amazing, as you can see. Once in Chile, we flew to Pumalin National Park in Patagonia, part of the land donated by Doug and Kris Tompkins. Doug was one of the founders of The North Face.
Like A Cruise Ship With Wings
The Kodiak took our team from the lowlands, with seas of pampas grass, to deep river canyons, and into some of the most beautiful backcountry farms, each with their own grass strip.
After leaving the city behind, we realized what the Kodiak was built for — exploration and adventure. Though unpressurized, the Kodiak easily climbed to 25,000 feet for the trip from Argentina to Chile.
Early Spanish explorers to Patagonia claimed that the area was inhabited by giants who were nine to twelve feet tall. Or, maybe it was just the majesty of the place, with towering mountains and deep valleys, that spurred their imaginations.
