Team from South Pole Rescue back home

On June 24th, I wrote about a rare successful mid-winter aerial rescue of two sick workers from the South Pole in Antarctica. The other day a read a report from CTV in Alberta Canada, with a few videos) that the two crews from Kenn Borek Air who flew this rare mid-winter trip Antarctica arrived back home in Calgary, Alberta on June 30th.

The article along with nine videos from CTV may be found on this CTV webpage (dated July 5, 2016). CTV reporters interviewed the Kenn Borek crews that participated in the mid-winter rescue from the South Pole on July 5th. I tried, but was unable to get the embed code to work here, sorry.

I am never certain how long these reports and the videos will be available, so I am highlighting for you some of the key points that I learned from reading the report and watching the videos. Watching all nine videos takes about 15 or 20 minutes tops.

• The two Twin Otters and their crews, traveling together,  arrived home in Calgary on June 30th.
• They traveled a total of 21,054 nautical miles.
• The two Twin Otters had extended fuel tanks taking up much of the "passenger area" and were equipped to handle winter weather in the Antarctic.
• The crews had Antarctic experience. The crew that flew to the South Pole talked about flying the route from Rothera Base to the South Pole in October (late spring and summer in the Antarctic), saying that even in the summer they often spent the 10 hour flight from Rothera to the South Pole in the clouds.
• The crews are committed and well trained. When the CTV reporter asked who would volunteer for such a mission in the future all raised their hands.
• In addition to using GPS for navigation the pilots used celestial navigation.
• The two Twin Otters left Alberta on June 14th, making their last stop of the day in Texas. Pilots from Kenn Borek air flew on a commercial flight to Texas so that the team could continue to fly, at night to the next stop in Costa Rica.
• By June 17th the Twin Otters had arrived at Punta Arenas, Chile. Medics joined the Kenn Borek teams in Chile.
• The Twin Otter that stayed behind in Punta Arenas had her skis on until just before the Twin Otter (KBG) that flew to the South Pole arrived back in Punta Arenas when they changed out her skies for wheels.

Kudos on successful and rare winter-time medical evacuation from South Pole

Direct link to CBS This Morning June 21st report on then upcoming rescue mission to South Pole 

Direct link to CBS This Morning June23rd report after sick workers evacuated from South Pole 

I am sure that most of you are aware of the evacuation of two ill workers from the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station at the bottom of the world. The South Pole is in the midst of winter, six months of darkness and brutally cold and often windy conditions. Flights into and out of the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station cease from February through October, resuming in summer. This medical evacuation is only the third time workers have been evacuated from the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, earlier evacuations being in 2001 and 2003 (http://www.inews880.com/2016/06/22/dangerous-antarctic-rescue-mission-continues-for-alberta-pilots/?sc_ref=facebook, http://www.nature.com/news/daring-antarctic-rescue-mission-sets-off-for-south-pole-1.20135?WT.mc_id=FBK_NatureNews). 

Kenn Borek Air Ltd, of Alberta Canada has a large fleet of Twin Otters, specializing in flying into polar regions, the Arctic and the Antarctic. The Twin Otters can operate in very cold conditions, down to -75C (http://www.nature.com/news/daring-antarctic-rescue-mission-sets-off-for-south-pole-1.20135?WT.mc_id=FBK_NatureNews). Two Twin Otters left Alberta on June 14th, reaching Punta Arenas, Chile on June 16th, bad weather delayed their departure for the Rothera Research Station until June 20th. (http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/kenn-borek-air-south-pole-june-22-1.3646966).  One June 21st, one Twin Otter and crew, including a medical technician, made the dangerous ten-hour, 1,500 mile flight to the  Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station while the second Twin Otter and crew remained behind in case a search and rescue was needed (it wasn’t). 

There is a nice article from the CBC dated June 17th where you a former Kenn Borek Air pilot who flew to the Antarctic on the 2001 and 2003 medical evacuation flights about what flying in the Antarctic in the dead of winter is like and the perils of such a flight. 

I am very glad that these flights to evacuate the two workers from the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station were successful. I know that many agencies as well as Kenn Borek Air were involved in the evacuation operations. We are all very thankful that the Twin Otters made these flights successfully. Kudos to all who were involved in the evacuation operation. A round of applause to the pilot and crew who flew to and from the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, and for the pilot and crew in the second Twin Otter who were ready to fly a search and rescue.