oleary,
As a Calgarian and someone who has spent some time paxing in Twin Otters in the Arctic, I was annoyed by the daredevil headline.
I was going to post about it, but your post is much more authoritative.
The conditions at the South Pole are admittedly extreme, but KBA's experience in the Canadian High Artic makes the company uniquely qualified for this mission.
Have a look at the weather in Resolute (74°42' N 094°50' W):
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resolute,_Nunavut
It is also one of the coldest inhabited places in the world, with an average yearly temperature of −15.7° C (3.7° F)
The January daily mean temperature is -35° C and the record low is -52° C!
Even much further south, temperatures can be very low. For example, even in Calgary (KBA's HQ - 51° N - the same latitude as Gatwick), there are a few days each winter with temperatures below -30° C and the record low is -45° C.
I've spent time in northern Alberta and BC, and the Arctic on seismic crews in very cold temperatures. The biggest issue is not so much the actual temperature, but the wind-chill which sends the apparent temperature plunging. This affects not just people but machinery as well. Steel becomes brittle and hydraulic hoses fracture.
Vehicles are usually never shutdown and are left running all night, with an electric "block-heater" plugged in for good measure. With aircraft, the engines are covered with insulated blankets and kept warm with electric heaters or Herman Nelson hot-air heaters.
I liked the video interviews of the crews - very modest and professional. Well done KBA.