AirtrafficController
2008-01-11, 05:11 PM
WILKINS RUNWAY, Antarctica — Australian scientists landed on an ice runway in Antarctica on Friday, officially opening a new air link between Australia and the white continent.
An Airbus A319 became the first passenger aircraft to land on the 2.5-mile-long Wilkins Runway, inaugurating a weekly service from the southern city of Hobart that will run during the summer season between October and March.
The flight — which will carry scientists and is not open to tourists — means Australia has joined other Antarctic nations, including the United States, that have regular air contact with scientific bases there.
It also heralds a new era of Australian research in the Antarctic, with a 4.5-hour flight now an alternative to a five-week sea voyage.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,321936,00.html
An Airbus A319 became the first passenger aircraft to land on the 2.5-mile-long Wilkins Runway, inaugurating a weekly service from the southern city of Hobart that will run during the summer season between October and March.
The flight — which will carry scientists and is not open to tourists — means Australia has joined other Antarctic nations, including the United States, that have regular air contact with scientific bases there.
It also heralds a new era of Australian research in the Antarctic, with a 4.5-hour flight now an alternative to a five-week sea voyage.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,321936,00.html