Fri, Feb 04, 2005
An R44 Raven II helicopter piloted
by Quentin Smith and co-pilot Steve Brooks landed at the South Pole
on January 18, 2005. This was another historic first for the two
British pilots, as they were the first to land an R44 helicopter at
the North Pole in June 2002.
Smith (40 years old) and Brooks (44 years old) began their
journey in Buenos Aires on December 29, 2004 and reached the
world’s southernmost city, Ushuaia, Argentina, after a week
of flying. To arrive at their next destination, the Argentina
Antarctica base in Jubany, the pilots had to fly past Cape Horn and
across the Drake Passage. Smith described this portion of the
journey as “480 miles of the most treacherous weather in the
world”.
On January 17, after several days of preparation and weather
delays, the pilots flew the R44 to within 5 nautical miles of the
South Pole. They waited for weather conditions to sufficiently
improve to get approval to land at the South Pole.
“Everything in the interior is white, lifeless, and too harsh
for life,” said Smith. “Flying is dependent on having
good contrast in the texture of the snow, weather is
critical”.
The two pilots built igloos and spent the night in sub-zero
weather encased in fog. On the morning of January 18 they received
permission to fly to the South Pole. With the temperature -25
C°, they built a small igloo around the Raven II’s engine
compartment. Using an avgas-cooking stove inside the igloo, they
warmed the engine to +2 C°. “The engine started first
time with no difficulty,” reported Smith.
The South Pole is 9,300 feet above sea level but to arrive at
this destination Smith was required at times to fly the R44 at
14,000 feet density altitude. At the time of landing, however, the
conditions were perfect; the temperature was -26 C° and it was
a beautiful blue sunny day. The two pilots spent some time picture
taking and enjoying their accomplishment before beginning their
return journey.
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