El primer B737 que aterrizó en la Antartida.

Boeing 737 Landed In Antarctica



On the 28th November 2012, for the very first time, a Boeing 737 landed in Antarctica, on a
runway of blue glacial ice.


The flight was operated by PrivatAir a leader in business aviation and private scheduled services, 

and was commissioned by the Norwegian Polar Institute ( N P I ) in collaboration with Aircontact , 

a Norwegian air charter broker. Departing from Cape Town, this was a non-stop journey lasting

just under six hours.

The destination for the flight was the Troll Research Station, located 235 kilometres from the
coast in the eastern part of Princess Martha Coast, in Queen Maud Land, Antarctica. Run by
the Norwegian Polar Institute, the station is dedicated to environmental and climate
monitoring, scientific research and mapping. As such, throughout the summer season, which
lasts from November to February, the station welcomes a number of scientists and
researchers. The objective of this project was to prove that a commercial airline can
operate such a service to the industry safety standards, whilst improving efficiency
and minimising environmental impact.

A huge amount of preparation went into this landmark flight. The aircraft was equipped with a
SatCom system to ensure weather updates could be received from the station right up to the
point of no return, about one hour out from arrival. The pilots trained in the flight simulator fo
the visual approach onto the 3000m long ice runway. The flight path was programmed into
the computers and new specific charts were designed. The performance of the aircraft’s
landing and taking off capability on an ice runway was analyzed, in collaboration with the NP
and the engine manufacturers. Two members of the crew undertook Arctic Survival training
and the aircraft was equipped with Polar survival kits. Dennis Kaer, the captain, has been
working on the project for over a year: “The preparation that has gone into this flight is
immense. You have to look at every aspect, consider all scenarios and prepare meticulously
for each and every one. There can be no simple assumptions.” The final nod came from the
Swiss regulatory authority, which reviewed all the research and gave the approval for the
flight to take place under PrivatAir’s commercial certificate.
The weather conditions on the day were perfect and both the flight and landing were smooth.
In order to comfortably face the cold temperatures, all passengers changed into Polar survival
suits prior to disembarking, a vivid reminder that despite the comfort and ease of the journey,
the destination they had reached was extreme. Greg Thomas, CEO of PrivatAir, was on the
aircraft and is proud of the achievement: “PrivatAir has a long history of undertaking
operational and technical challenges. We are proud that PrivatAir was successful in
organizing and operating a flight (up to the international commercial aviation standards) to
one of the most remote and hostile places on Earth.”
For the whole PrivatAir team and for their counterparts at the Norwegian Polar Institute and
Aircontact, there was a sense of having pushed beyond a boundary, and succeeded. The aim
now for 2013 is to make this a regular scheduled service.

About PrivatAir

PrivatAir is a leading international business aviation group with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland and operating bases in Frankfurt (Germany), Geneva (Switzerland) and Brazzaville (Congo). The company has been in operation for over 35 years and currently employs 425 people. PrivatAir is a comprehensive aviation group with three divisions delivering service excellence both in the air and on the ground: Scheduled Services, Business Aviation (Aircraft Management, Aircraft Charter, Aircraft Sales, PrivatJetFuel / Fuel Management, Ground Services) and PrivatTraining.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT PRIVATAIR:

Laurent Eugene
Tel: +41 22 929 6788
laurenteugene@privatair.com

www.privatair.com

Un Airbus llegó primero

Un vuelo chárter enlazó el 11 de Enero de 2008, por primera vez en la historia, Australia y la Antártida, gracias a un avión especialmente habilitado para poder aterrizar y despegar en una pista de hielo.

El ministro australiano de Medio Ambiente, Peter Garrett, ex líder de la banda de rock Midnight Oil, fue uno de los 19 pasajeros que recorrieron los 3.400 kilómetros que separan Hobart, capital de Tasmania, de la estación de Casey de la Antártida.

El aparato, un Airbus A319 , puede ser utilizado únicamente por científicos y expertos, por lo que se excluye su uso con fines turísticos.