Notes on Antarctic Aviation

Abstract

Antarctic aviation has been evolving for the best part of a century, with regular air operations developing over the past three or four decades. Antarctica is the last continent where aviation still depends almost entirely on expeditionary airfields and 'bush flying,' but change seems imminent. This report describes the history of aviation in Antarctica, the types and characteristics of existing and proposed airfield facilities, and the characteristics of aircraft suitable for Antarctic use. It now seems possible for Antarctic aviation to become an extension of mainstream international aviation. The basic requirement is a well-distributed network of hard-surface airfields that can be used safely by conventional aircraft, together with good international collaboration. The technical capabilities already exist.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Aug 01, 1993
Accession Number
ADA273018

Entities

People

  • Malcolm Mellor

Organizations

  • Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aircraft Equipment
  • Aircrafts
  • Airframes
  • Cargo Aircraft
  • Civil Engineering
  • Environment
  • Fixed Wing Aircraft
  • Geography
  • Glaciers
  • Inertial Navigation
  • Landing Fields
  • Navigation
  • Ridges
  • Short Takeoff Aircraft
  • Snow Roads
  • Topography
  • Transport Aircraft

Readers

  • Aviation Safety and Air Traffic Management
  • Polar and Arctic Studies
  • Strategic Security Studies