A week later, this was our transport back to Beijing. Never an easy type to pick up as a ride, it was interesting to make comparisons with contemporary western types. Seemed spacious, comfortable and superficially at least, not far off Airbus standards of quality. One of two in the fleet (the other is the short -300 variant), originally intended for Red Wings but delivered to Air Koryo in 3.10 after engine test-bed work

You can get some impression of how well maintained Air Koryo's ageing fleet appear to be in this shot after landing back at the capital

This 1966 veteran is still doing good service in North Korea and is one of three or four of the type active with Air Koryo. Great fun to fly on but I'd forgotten how noisy they can be inside. Just love that snarling pitch change sound those Ivchenko turboprops make on taxi

Soon after what has to be one of the most awesome flights I've ever made. There was even in-flight service, if you count a young lady handing out copies of the Pyongyang Times!

It was a real privilege to ride the world's last IL-18 in regular airline service. Visiting the nearby Mount Paektu volcano was stunning too. At the time 43 years old, Air Koryo did not plan to withdraw this classic, which has spent its entire career based in North Korea, within the next ten years…

The monster is put to bed back at base after carrying two dozen rather pleased enthusiasts - most went out to Sondok on the IL-76 and back on an An-24 which followed. What a day out - jet and prop perfection. I've made probably a hundred or more flights on Russian equipment but this was something else

Tu-154s P-552 and P-561 with IL-62s P-885 and P-886P. The intended use for the latter Ilyushin, which was ferried from Havana in July 2012 in basic Cubana colours, was unclear at the time (ex CU-T1280 c/n 3749648). It was later broken up for spares but in 2015 the nose was seen attached to a training building