Hi Fly land the first Airbus A340 in Antarctica
 

Lovely film and well done.

Film here..

My question is why? Didn't appear in the film that it was a cargo flight so are we now taking tourists to antartica?

Tourists have been flying into Antarctica since the mid 1980s. Adventure Network (now Antarctic Logistics and Expeditions) started taking people in from Punta Arenas, Chile, in a DC4, landing on wheels on glacier ice at a base camp in the Ellsworth Mountains at about 80S. From there they could continue in ski-planes either to mountaineering sites, or wildlife (emperor penguins on the coast), or on to the South Pole. Subsequently they used DC6, then civilian C130 (on wheels, operated by Safair), then Ilyushin 76.

The ice runway that this A340 went to has been in use for around 5 years (I think). In a different area, roughly due South of Cape Town, at the spectacular Fenriskjeften range of mountains. An Icelandic 767 went in there last season, and they regularly have Gulfstream G550 going in there. By arrangement you can fly your own private jet into their strip. Operated by a company called White Desert, their rates for an 8 day stay range between $83,000 and $98,000 per person, depending on excursions. A day-trip can be had for just $14,500!

Ice strip landings are not too bad as long as the weather is suitable. I was doing them with British Antarctic Survey, in a Dash7 into an ice strip at 75S for about 10 years.

Edit - my mistake, the Icelandair 767 last season flew into the ice strip at the Norwegian Antarctic research station, Troll - that is another amazing operation. Think this A340 might be the first really big aircraft they have had into the strip at Wolf’s Jaw (Fenriskjeften).

More details

https://livefromalounge.com/wow-hi-f...40-antarctica/

Nice film and good publicity for Hi Fly, which is run by the Mirpuris. It is an interesting company which mainly provides wet lease capacity to other airlines. They did great business covering 787 availability problems. I remember seeing 340s covering Norwegian services over an extended period. People I know who worked for them were pretty positive about what seemed quite an attractive lifestyle, Standby at home and then a few weeks in New Zealand or wherever with plenty of variety. I am sure it would not suit everyone, but certainly worth considering. I think both brothers were on the flight, one is a medical doctor as well if I remember correctly.

Yes, a good advert. It would have been interesting to know what breaking was set and ratio of reverse.

IL76's been flying to this field for decades - both cargo and tourists.

Not properly new for Titan

An A319 operated on behalf of Australia's Antarctic Division made its first flight to the the ice on 19th November 2007, Ppruner Compressor Stall has spent time in command.

https://www.antarctica.gov.au/antarc...d-information/

Yeah, nice video but a bit much "we are making history" talk for my taste. Other large aircraft have done this before so to me it's not all that historic just because this time it was an A340. Lot's of "historic" moments still to come: First A330 in Antarctica. First A350. First 787......

If you want historic. "Que Sera Sera" was the first to land at the South Pole itself. 31st October 1956. A DC3, ski equipped. Quite an apt name, considering. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VXE-6

The crew of the DC-3 (strictly speaking an R4D-5, ex C-47A) were the first humans to set foot on the South Pole since Captain Scott in 1912.

The aircraft survives in the National Naval Aviation Museum at Pensacola, on loan from the Smithsonian:

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....ff9dcf7327.jpg

You might find the recovery of a Herc some 17 years after it crashed at one of the poles interesting.


https://www.southpolestation.com/tri...y/321/321.html