GQPT - Western Sahara

World Heritage Sites Air Adventure: Out of Africa
Flight 19 – 11/15/2024

Finished up my Canary Islands mini-tour and spent most of today flying into the sun. Along the way, I watched two tankers on the ocean ignore basic rules of seafaring navigation—can’t believe there wasn’t a collision or a major fuel oil spill!

After that, I went “feet dry” and crossed over Western Sahara, a region with a fascinating and complicated history. Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco, Mauritania, and Algeria. It was a Spanish colony until 1975, after which Morocco and Mauritania both claimed it. Mauritania withdrew in 1979, but Morocco continues to administer most of the territory as its Southern Provinces. The Polisario Front, however, seeks independence and controls some areas, declaring the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). The United Nations still considers Western Sahara a non-self-governing territory, and the question of its final status remains unresolved, with ongoing tensions and diplomatic efforts.

Mostly, though, I flew over sand—LOTS of sand. For the first time, ForeFlight and X-Plane didn’t agree on the location of an airport: GQPT isn’t where ForeFlight says it is, and ATC definitely wasn’t amused when I landed somewhere it didn’t want me to. Tomorrow, it’s back to the World Heritage Sites Air Tour!Read more