澳大利亚航空公司Skytraders于2024年7月31日派遣一架空中客车A319从霍巴特飞往南极美国麦克默多站，在零下43摄氏度的极端寒冷和完全黑暗条件下执行了一次罕见的医疗救援任务[1]。这架飞机用时5小时30分钟将一名患有严重疾病的美国人转运至新西兰基督城医院[1]。
此次救援任务在南极冬季最严酷的条件下进行——此时南极已于3月23日进入极夜，9月21日才会迎来日出[1]。飞行员Louise Robertson表示，这次任务"非常接近飞机能力的极限"，她指出"在完全黑暗和这些极端寒冷的温度条件下到达那里非常罕见，我相信之前没有人这样做过"[1]。原定的救援任务因暴雪推迟了一天才得以实施，当天风速约为8节[1]。
An Australian airline successfully completed an extraordinary medical evacuation from Antarctica during the southern hemisphere's most extreme winter conditions. Skytraders dispatched an Airbus A319 from Hobart to the U.S. Antarctic research station at McMurdo on July 31, 2024, to transport an American patient in serious condition to Christchurch Hospital in New Zealand.[1] The five-and-a-half-hour flight occurred in complete darkness and temperatures reaching minus 43 degrees Celsius (minus 45.4 degrees Fahrenheit), with wind speeds around 8 knots.[1]
The mission represented a historic undertaking in Antarctic aviation. Pilot Louise Robertson stated that the conditions "were very close to being too cold" and emphasized that "to get there in complete darkness in these extreme cold temperatures is very, very rare," adding "I believe it hasn't been done before."[1] The originally scheduled rescue had been delayed by one day due to severe blizzard conditions before the crew determined conditions were viable for the attempt.[1] At the time of the flight, Antarctica was in the depths of its winter season, with the sun having set on March 23 and not scheduled to rise again until September 21.[1]