Thread: Antarctica and Tractors

Ah...1998. I misread your earlier post, was thinking 10 years earlier!

I had a mate on that voyage. Report here for those nautical ones amongst us. http://ncsp.tamu.edu/reports/ATSB/rpt135.pdf

Where did you fly out to?

I actually sailed aboard the Aurora Australis in November 1997, saw Christmas and new year in aboard the vessel, enroute to Casey.

After we (the 1998 crews for Casey, Mawson and Davis bases) were all dropped off, and the 1997 crews extracted, and the resupply operations completed... the Aurora departed back to Oz before the winter freeze.

That fire that happened on the voyage your mate was on, the link you provided, happened while I was already down south. There were assurances from ANTDIV that it would be fixed in time - before the voyages to come extract us near the end of 1998.

Sure enough the repairs and sea trials all competed and the Aurora sailed south with the 3 new crews (for 1999 year) aboard.

They stopped by Casey first, dropped off the incoming crew, we did resupply operations (something like 900,000 litres of diesel fuel transferred to our fuel tank farm, along with tons and tons of equipment, supplies, food etc).

Then the Aurora departed to Mawson and Davis to drop off new crews there and do resupply ops.

After visiting all three bases, inserting the incoming crews, the plan was to return to each base and extract the outgoing crews. The overlap giving good time for handover.

Unfortunately (this the voyage accident I refer to) somewhere off the coast of Davis Base the Aurora damaged its propulsion system and needed a tow home.

Davis and Mawson bases are close enough to do long range helo flights and get Mawson teams to the ship. But Casey is too far away from Davis base for that with long range helos.

The "Twotter" was with a Canadian company doing aerial radar imaging of what is under the ice. They were around Davis at the time. They offered to fly to Casey and bring back a dozen or so of the outgoing casey crew.

To get the range needed to do this trip they had to turn the twotter almost into a flying fuel tank. They flew from Davis a number of times to establish 44 gallon drum refuelling caches along the way.

One of the refuel caches was at a Russian base between Davis and Casey.

They eventually made it to Casey. Refuelled turned around and started back.

As I understand it some flight rules were broken. Normally it i required that aircraft have fuel enough aboard to go back to where they started even if almost reaching destination. This is because blizzards give little warning. It is entirely possible to almost reach destination and not be able to land, turn back.

As we approached the russian base they radioed to say bliz was already picking up. We didnt have enough fuel to return to Casey. So pressed on.

We were briefed before landing - all hands needed to crank hand pumps and drain 44 gall drums into the aircraft's fuel tanks. We will be lucky to land, refuel, and get back in the air before the bliz sets in.

The pilot, in an amazing show of skill, flying low, in low viz, with bliz already a metre or so above the ice, found the smooth landing area (for ski's of course) between the sastrugi and then and dumped the twotter onto the ice.

We turned around the refuelling fast. The Russians were good hosts sharing their dry bread and vodka with us as we worked. (It was about all they had left before their resupply came).

We got back into the air and made it back to Davis, then to the Aurora.

A Japanese icebreaker was contracted to tow the Aurora out of the ice. Then a South African ocean going salvage tug (The "John Ross") was to tow her back across the wildest southern ocean to either SA or OZ.

The Aurora engineers managed to get the propulsion system working before the John Ross picked up the tow. They just escorted the Aurora Australis back to Fremantle, sailing under her own power.

So what an exciting year it was:
- Aurora Australis catches fire, doubts we can be extracted after our year+ on ice
- 14 months of adventure on the Antarctic continent
- Aurora Australis makes it south but breaks down in pack ice. Again not sure of extraction
- The twotter flight itself! excitement plus. Not to mention drinking real russian vodka with real russians on a russian base.
- the tow out of the ice pack
- the crossing of the southern ocean with dodgy "duct tape and fencing wire" propulsion system fixes

Some pics of the Aurora tow and return to OZ

The Aurora Australis in foreground. The Japanese "Shirase" contracted to do the tow out of the ice


Taking up the tow


The ocean going salvage tug, "John Ross", escorting the Aurora Australis back to Freo after temp propulsion system repairs were in place.

Originally Posted by stallie

Ah...1998. I misread your earlier post, was thinking 10 years earlier!

I had a mate on that voyage. Report here for those nautical ones amongst us. http://ncsp.tamu.edu/reports/ATSB/rpt135.pdf

Where did you fly out to?

I've been reading that fascinating report, better leave it half way and get back to the lawn mowing for now.
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Originally Posted by stallie

G'day Tact,

I was still at high school in 88.... And fly fixed wing, although am tempted by the 'dark side'! What were you doing there?

I have always been fascinated with helos since a small kid. My dad once took me to Amberley air base when he was doing some work there. Some engineers were getting ready to test fly an old helo they were working on.

I must have been only 5 or 6yo. They asked me if I'd like a ride. They sat me in the aircraft, legs dangling out the side door. They only took it up a metre or two and hovered in a square for testing. But I was hooked then.

Never made moves to make helos part of my life or career. Other priorities took all my resources. But loved the helo jollies down south. Got stories to tell but better not publish here or people may be in strife.

What did I do? Well all winterers have a "day job" and its a paid govt job. My role was SEFM (electrician) with skills around power generation, HV distribution , HV protection systems and building management software systems.

All wintering expeditioners also wear several other hats as we provide all services to visiting scientists.

I took on roles like: Fire team, search & rescue (first responder), vehicles operator, and got a Coxswain's ticket to skipper our boats for summer marine science

My favourite volunteer role was "Route Master". I took responsibility to travel every route to all outlying huts and sites to check for safe travel and relocate markers or routes where needed (eg if new crevasses made an established route unsafe) then map it all, create data bases of GPS waypoints, and keep it all up to date.


Doing "Route Master" type work...
Empty 44 gallon drums on poles were used wherever there was change in direction on a route. They were used because in whiteout or bliz conditions a vehicle with radar could see them on screen and traverse a route essentially "blind". (Note the radar on the top of the front of the Hagglunds. We used to practice driving blind by blacking out all the windows and using radar/GPS only)

Often GPS alone, with the intentional positional errors present in that system at the time, was not accurate enough to safely traverse some routes if "blind".

Have a stroll around inside Scott's Hut.

Scott's Hut and the Explorers' Heritage of Antarctica, Google World Wonders Project



Ref; PHOTOS: Antarctic "Time Capsule" Hut Revealed




Ref; Scott’s Discovery Hut | southpoledoc

I suspect most are familiar with the story of Royal Navy Captain Robert Falcon Scott and his ill fated South Pole attempt in 1911 – 1912, of which I will have more in a later blog. But you may not know “Commander” Scott also led a British Antarctic Expedition in 1902. He erected a wooden hut in February 1902 at Hut Point on Ross Island by McMurdo Sound, Antarctica. The hut was prefabricated by James Moore of Sydney, Australia and brought south aboard Discovery, Scott’s ship.

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Scott's Hut's.

Ref; Discovery Hut - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Discovery Hut was erected in 1902 by Robert Falcon Scott's 1903-1907 Discovery expedition.



Ref; Scott's Hut - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Some confusion arises because Discovery Hut can technically be referred to as 'Scott's' Hut, in that his expedition built it, and it was his base ashore during the 1901–1904 expedition, but the title 'Scott's Hut' popularly belongs to the building erected in 1911 at Cape Evans.

Click on link and take a stroll around inside Scott's Hut.

Scott's Hut and the Explorers' Heritage of Antarctica, Google World Wonders Project
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Ref; My Antarctic Adventure: Saturday 21st September 2013

Saturday 21st September 2013
----- Keldyn had his first day practising to drive the loader today moving snow and ice about as he will need to be proficient by the time of resupply. Listening to the radio he couldn't open the door to get out, and Geoff said just open the bloody door but little did they know the warmer weather we have been experiencing had melted all the snow inside the door and turned to ice in the door lock mechanism. After an hour or so, Geoff managed to get him back out using a crow bar.

Next time, I will be putting up some stuff about Douglas Mawson.
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