First flight to the Thomas Hills - jet assisted!

Hi Friends!


Yesterday, Greg and Chris accompanied the first flight out to our field area, the Thomas Hills. It was a successful and exciting day! Greg and Chris had to be at the MCC (Movement Control Center) at 6:45 AM on Wednesday the 14th. Once they checked in, they were transported to Pegasus Ice Runway, about 15 miles or 45 minutes from McMurdo. When they arrived at the Ice Runway, they were transported to the LC-130.

Before boarding the plane, Greg managed to snap this picture of the crew attaching the JATO (jet-assisted take off) units to the side of the LC-130. (All photos in this post courtesy of Greg Balco!). 

Part of the LC-130 fleet with the Royal Society mountain range in the background (Photo courtesy of Greg Balco!).

Half of our cargo: fuel, sleds, and some triwalls (triple-layered cardboard boxes).  When it is time to offload the cargo, the ramp at the back of the plane will lower and the pallets will be released from the airplane while it is taxiing (Photo courtesy of Greg Balco!).  

The JATO units! Often, snowy landing sites produce a lot of friction between the plane's skis and the landing surface. These units provide additional power to pilots for take-off. At this point in the flight, they have not been deployed  (Photo courtesy of Greg Balco!) .

Approaching our field site! Greg and Chris were allowed to spend the duration of the flight in the back of the cockpit! The dark area visible through the middle pane is the Thomas Hills (Photo courtesy of Greg Balco!). 

Circling the Thomas Hills, which are visible in the middle of this photograph (Photo courtesy of Greg Balco!).

On the ground! The plane never stopped moving as it released the pallets out of the back of the aircraft. This area (where our cargo was deposited) will likely be our campsite for at least part of the season! Check out our new home! (Photo courtesy of Greg Balco!)

Back on the ground at the Pegasus Ice Runway  (Photo courtesy of Greg Balco!). 

Removing the JATO units. Hopefully we get to see them in action when we fly our second flight (Photo courtesy of Greg Balco!).   

We received tentative notice that we will fly out with the rest of our cargo tomorrow morning (Friday, December 16th for us). We are very excited and ready to go! In order to fly, we have to participate in "Bag Drag" tonight. Bag Drag is a time-honored McMurdo tradition that involves all passengers dragging their checked baggage up to the Movement Control Center the night before their flight. There are three or four flights scheduled for tomorrow, so we will not be the only ones bag dragging tonight. Bag dragging the night before is necessary so that cargo handlers can prepare pallets of checked baggage in time for a morning flight take off. 


More from us later tonight. I have a few more posts prepared to publish before our departure, and I'm preparing some scheduled blog posts while we're away to give you some idea of what our life will be like in the field.


Hope all is well with you!


Claire