On Sunday, the day after I arrived in Cape Town, I returned to the airport, to check on the parking situation. I realized the was a flying club, Cape Town Flying club, so I asked someone there if I could park on their area, which I was allowed to. It was a vice move, as I was told the area where I first parked belonged to Signature Flight and the cost was 450 R per day. At the club I paid 100R for 3 days.
However, before I could move the plane, I had to borrow auxiliary power battery, as the battery again had become discharged! But I contributed it to the fact, that I had left the power supply to my HF radio on (a 24v to 12v inverter).
Monday afternoon I returned to the airport again and took off flying the full length of the Cap the Good Hope Peninsula Ð Right down to the southern most point where the light house is, But the time I got there the sun set, and I returned to the airport flying North along the west side of the peninsula and over Cape Town north of the Table Mountain.
Wednesday morning I was ready to depart, I took my luggage to the plane, and returned the rental car at the main terminal. Then I tried to get through immigration, but that seemed impossible. I was around several parts of the terminal before ending up at the departure desk. But because I was leaving the country Ð and not entering, the officer there could not help me Ð and nobody else could Ð maybe I could get to the airside Ð but how would I get to plane etc etc,
I gave up and walked the 2 kilometers back to the plane on the outside of the airport fence, I have never Ð in the whole world Ð experienced something like this.
But I decided to take off anyway Ð except now the battery was drained again? But borrowning auxiliary power again, I got it started and taxied to the gate on taxiway hotel. But then ground informed me, that my flightplan had been rejected by Johannesberg, so I had to turn around and park by Signatue who kindly helped me file a new fileplan. It turned out, that Johannesburg didnÕ think my plan had enough waypoints ( there aren't many obvious ones up north!)
I got ready to go again - but again I could not start. The Signature people got hold of the Auxiliary power, and I got the engine started and was on my way once again. But now the engine was misfiring and I realized that in one cylinder the valves were not working, and as I was talking to ground control, I had to inform them, that I had to cancel the flight plan, and return to get the engine checked.
It was now too late for me to depart now. The guys at the workshop were very helpful and they soon found out, that all the valves were working but that spark plugs needed cleaning. It was decided, that a new battery was necessary, but it would take 2 days to get one Ð but they got hold of a shop in Windhoek, where a battery was in stock.
So today I was ready to fly nonstop to Windhoek to get a new battery Ð and not to Sossusvlei via Oranjemund as had been my plan. I had the friendly people at the flying club trying to phone the immigration, and this time around I managed to get an exit stamp and a stamp on my general declaration.
I took off early in the afternoon, and flew by the harbor north through the Langebaanweg military area at 4500 feet. Crossing the Namibian border, I headed for the Fish River Canyon, the world's second largest after the Grand Canyon in the USA. I followed the canyon north for some time, and after dark I climbed to 10.000 feet before getting to Windhoek, that has an elevation on 5.550 feet . I could see the runway a long way out and came in for a visual landing by a right downwind to runway 19.
I parked by the terminal building and got out of the plane to go through immigration with the engine still running (the tower accepted this). Soon after, I could taxi to the workshop of Westair where my new battery was to be installed the next morning.
