More Air Support Planned For Antarctic Scientific Projects

Press, Volume C, Issue 29707, 28 December 1961, Page 13

More Air Support Planned For Antarctic Scientific Projects

In the next few years United States aircraft may be operating more extensively from inland stations in the Antarctic. By 1964 Navy aircraft may be using the ski runway at the South Pole station to support scientific activities in other parts of the continent, and in the summer of 1963 they will start flying deeper into virgin territory from New Byrd station in Marie Byrd Land. A long-range plan to extend scientific support by air in West Antarctica involves the establishment of bulk storage facilities for aviation fuel at inland stations. The first fuel depot proposed is at New Byrd station. Fuel for Navy Neptune and Skytrain aircraft will be stored in huge rubber bladder tanks by the runway. The next stage may be the storage of fuel at the South Pole. It could be transported there by tractors towing a string of rubber roili-tank-ers. There is a known route from New Byrd station to the Pole as a result of the

800-mile traverse led by Major A. Havola last season. Late next month the Navy icebreaker Glacier will be exploring the coast of Marie Byrd Land. During her voyage a suitable site will be sought in the Sulzberger Bay area for an off loading station from which to supply New Byrd station with fuel by tractor trains of roilitankers. Fuel could be taken this way along the 600-mile Army-Navy Drive between Little America and New Byrd station, but a shorter route from Sulzberger Bay would enable heavier loads of fuel to be transported. Bulk Storage Development work on the use of roili-tankers has been done by the United States Army. One tractor can tow a load of 29.000 gallons of fuel. It has been estimated that a train of six tractors could deliver 100,000 gallons net to New Byrd station Bulk storage of this quantity of fuel would enable aircraft to make longer mapping flights and support scientific traverses. The roili-tanker project is regarded as the best way of putting large quantities of aviation fuel into New Byrd station. Rear-Admiral D. M. Tyree, the United States naval support force commander, says that New Byrd station will become more and more a staging base, and the supply of aviation fuel is going to become more important in future operations. But the project is still in the planning stage and unlikely

to be in operation until the 1963-64 season. The need for bulk storage of fuel at inland stations was emphasised during the establishment of the Sky-Hi summer scientific station deep in Ellsworth Land. Everything needed had to be flown in from McMurdo Sound. The Hercules ski planes which landed at Sky-Hi and the Air Force Globemasters which dropped drums of fuel, made round trips of 3200 miles. If there had been bulk fuel storage at New Byrd station, it would not have been necessary to stretch the logistic capacity of aircraft by such flights.