And it's hit the news!!!!
5:23am (UK)
Helicopter Gran Lands in Antarctica
A 63-year-old British grandmother hoping to become the first helicopter pilot to circumnavigate the globe over both poles has landed in Antarctica.
Jennifer Murray touched down to refuel at a research station on Monday after crossing the wind-swept Drake Passage that separates the icy continent from South America, the Argentine Air Force said in a statement.
Murray was expected to travel in her single-engine helicopter to another base on the Antarctic peninsula before attempting to push on to the South Pole in the next few days.
That trip nearly halfway into her journey will be rife with challenges, including heavy winds, ice crystals and flying at high altitudes.
Murray and her co-pilot, 52-year-old Colin Bodill, from Nottingham, hope to reach the South Pole in their cherry red Bell 407 helicopter on December 17, the 100th anniversary of the Wright brothers’ first powered flight.
They began their 32,000 mile journey in New York on October 22 and hope to return by April 14.
Their crossing of the Drake Passage – home to some of the most unstable and inhospitable weather on Earth – was the first in a single-engine helicopter, the Argentine Air Force said.
The Argentine military monitored Murray and Bodill’s flight pattern and kept three planes on alert as they flew over the rough and choppy waters speckled with icebergs.
For the South Pole trip, the pair had fuel drums dropped at various points along the way to allow for refuelling. They also have their own search and rescue team should they experience any problems.
Murray, who was born in Providence, Rhode Island, moved to England with her family as a youngster. Now living in London, she is seeking her third aviation record in an attempt to raise money for the World Wildlife Fund.
In 1997, she won a spot in the Guinness Book of Records as the first woman to circumnavigate the glove in a helicopter. Three years later, she reached another aviation milestone – becoming the first woman to fly a helicopter around the world without an autopilot.
Murray only began flying nine years ago after her husband purchased a share of a helicopter but did not have time to learn to fly it.
The pilots will make 16 stopovers on their journey to spotlight the conservation work of the World Wildlife Fund.
from
Scotsman.com
Congratulations to Jennifer and all involved.