snooper Posted November 20, 2018 Share #1  Posted November 20, 2018 Advertisement (gone after registration) Once again this year we base our B757 VIP (usually flying rock bands on their world tours) in Cape Town and fly to Antarctica with scientists. We do like a flight per week and sometimes get to sleep there "overnight" even if there is obviously no night. We land on what is called "blue ice" and the landscapes are just beautiful. If you want to see a full landing I posted a (bad) video on youtube :  Anyway I will try to post a few pictures this year 🙂  Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! 15 Quote Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/291599-antarctica/?do=findComment&comment=3634009'>More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted November 20, 2018 Posted November 20, 2018 Hi snooper, Take a look here Antarctica. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
dkmoore Posted November 21, 2018 Share #2 Â Posted November 21, 2018 This is incredibly interesting. Thanks for sharing. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert blu Posted November 21, 2018 Share #3 Â Posted November 21, 2018 Interesting and nice... robert Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparkassenkunde Posted November 21, 2018 Share #4 Â Posted November 21, 2018 Now that is really interesting! Do the machines need different equipment for this, e.g. different types of tires? And how do the smaller machines seen in the video reach this destination? I have no idea but thought they are not build for long distances? I am eagerly waiting for more pictures from this remote place Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
snooper Posted November 21, 2018 Author Share #5  Posted November 21, 2018 Hello ! There is no specific equipment needed for our fleet as we have the option (as every Boeing) to work either in magnetic or true headings. This would be the only requirement as the compass is a bit weird down there, just like it is in Northern Greenland or Canada or Siberia. As you know the magnetic poles are not located on the geographic poles. Other than this, I used to tell my copilots "the aircraft doesn't know she'll be landing on ice: don't tell her, and you'll be fine"... As a matter of fact, we use a medium auto-brake, and we need to add a bit of engine power to get off the runway, the parking being located half way of this 9000 ft long "runway" (3000m). So no issue for braking, it feels like a lightly wet concrete runway. We fly down south for 5h30 min, with a point of no return roughly 1 hour North of the runway. From there we are committed to land and we have 3 runways available at 3 different locations. Visibility is about 200Km down there, there is no humidity at all, our only criteria is the "contrast" exactly like for our photography. With clouds in the upper levels, the light can become really white and you'd have a hard time to see the runway (white on white) until you actually land. So this is our main concern, and the contrast is expressed by weather people as being "poor" to "good". Once there, you have a bunch of smaller aircraft that will fly our scientists to their respective stations. This place is a kind of hub, where we bring scientist from the continent, and then they are dispatched in ski equipped Twin Otters or Baslers. The attached picture is one of the Baslers based in Antarctica. It's a ski and turbine equipped DC3. They land everywhere. I pay a huge respect to these pilots (mostly from Canada) for the tremendous work they do down there. This hub is used by 11 countries, mostly europeans, plus India and China. It is maintained and operated by the Russians, who have a bold experience of extreme conditions. Not a lot of Air Carrier are authorized to operate (in commercial transportation) to Antarctica. In Europe, we are only 2 operators. I'll be happy to answer any technical question you might have. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! 6 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/291599-antarctica/?do=findComment&comment=3634926'>More sharing options...
snooper Posted December 9, 2018 Author Share #6  Posted December 9, 2018 (edited) UK Magazine "Flight International" decided to use one of my Antarctica shots for the cover of the last 2018 issue... (M10) Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Edited December 9, 2018 by snooper 6 Quote Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/291599-antarctica/?do=findComment&comment=3644249'>More sharing options...
brill64 Posted December 10, 2018 Share #7 Â Posted December 10, 2018 Advertisement (gone after registration) Very cool.. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bateleur Posted December 10, 2018 Share #8 Â Posted December 10, 2018 Fascinating, I particularly enjoyed your 'drone' segments in the video. Looking forward to more photos 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gelatino Posted December 13, 2018 Share #9  Posted December 13, 2018 Hello snooper, This hub seems to be  in the "unclaimed area? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
snooper Posted December 13, 2018 Author Share #10  Posted December 13, 2018 Hello, This "hub" is located in the Dronning Maud Land, the Norwegian claimed sector of Antarctica, extending from 20 West to 45 East. A total of 11 countries do have their stations in this area, normally restricted to science (vs tourism, military, industrial, etc.). Norway operates a runway called "Troll" while the Russians are feeding the other 10 countries logistic (cargo and passengers) with a runway called "Novolazarevskaya" (Novo)... This explains the Russian cargo aircraft on the video, an IL76TD for the connoisseurs 😉 UK is using some infrastructures located West of Dronning Maud Land, while Australia is using their facilities located East of it. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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