澳大利亚航空公司Skytraders的机组人员在冬至前后的极端条件下，成功执行了一次南极医疗撤离任务[1]。飞行队驾驶空客A319飞机（代号Snowbird 1）从澳大利亚塔斯马尼亚州霍巴特市起飞，在零下43摄氏度的低温和完全黑暗的环境中，于冰跑道上安全着陆在美国McMurdo研究站[1]。机组随后将需要医疗转运的患者送往新西兰基督城接受治疗，患者现已恢复良好[1]。
此次任务在天气条件恶劣的背景下进行，飞行前曾因天气因素延迟12小时起飞[1]。机长Al Wallach表示："每一次南极任务都要求绝对的精确性，但冬季运营使复杂程度明显提高"[1]。Skytraders副首席执行官Duncan Mackay指出，这是民用客机在冬至前最接近的一次南极运营[1]。公司历史上最近的类似任务发生在2020年3月，当时的温度为零下30摄氏度[1]。
An Australian aviation team successfully executed a medical evacuation from Antarctica in extraordinary winter conditions, demonstrating precision flying in one of Earth's harshest environments. [1] The Skytraders crew flew an Airbus A319, designated Snowbird 1, from Hobart, Tasmania, to the U.S. McMurdo Research Station on Ross Island, where they extracted a patient requiring urgent medical care. [1] The aircraft then transported the patient to Christchurch, New Zealand, where the individual has since recovered well. [1]
The mission took place last Friday under extreme circumstances that tested the limits of civilian aviation operations in Antarctica. [1] Temperatures plummeted to minus 43 degrees Celsius, and the region experienced complete darkness, requiring the crew to execute a landing on an ice runway under these unforgiving conditions. [1] The operation was delayed by 12 hours before departure due to adverse weather. [1] Captain Al Wallach, piloting the aircraft, remarked that "every Antarctic mission demands absolute precision, but winter operations raise the complexity significantly." [1] According to Duncan Mackay, Deputy Chief Executive of Skytraders, this represented the closest a civilian airliner has operated to the winter solstice in Antarctica. [1] The previous comparable mission occurred in March 2020, when temperatures were measured at minus 30 degrees Celsius. [1]