Antarctic.V11.7.1987.Pdf
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lHOIdAdOD dVW A13IOOS OUOUV1NV QN\nv3Z M3N mnooT VNUN30UV ujiten ues |EJ3uag ti sonvisi Sims jeleAjEQ aiuamai ct xn Bjaijiou 21 ONV113HS xnAepejej u wn J3UI|Ed 01 Hinos VNUN30UV oiquiuen ojopouioo aaiA 6 3NUN30UV enieiadsj 9 3HH3 sujOOfH.O opjwuag pjauag 1 3iiH3 ibjj ojnuv ueiideo g *nim3 iicm leaJD ossn uasRetisfiuiiiag 3HH3 gSJBH O||0p0y 31USIU31 5 kimnun sefiiuv > TMUN30UV Ausqnp aiuafuax £ owncw ii|$M0]3JV AlUSH Z -iizvua 7BU3J siuspueujoo i VlnSNINSd 3I13UV1NV ANTARCTIC (successor to "Antarctic News Bulletin) Vol. 11 No. 7 Issue 127 Vol. 11 No.'sltol2 January 1986 to December 1988 Contents Polar Activities ANTARCTIC is published quarterly by the New Zealand 274 New Zealand Antarctic Society Inc., 1978. Australia 282 United Kingdom ISSN 0003-5327 284 United States 288 Editor: Robin Ormerod West Germany 290 Please address all editorial inquiries, con tributions etc. to the Editor, P.O. Box 2110, Antarctic Treaty 291 Wellington, New Zealand. Antarctic oil 292 Telephone: (04) 791-226 International: + 64-4-791-226 Sub-Antarctic Deadline for final copy for the next issue is Macquarie 293 May 10. Publication date approximately May 31. General 296 All administrative enquiries should go to Greenpeace Bulletin "Co-ordinator", P.O. Box 1223, Mt Minto 299 Christchurch. Trans-Antarctic 300 Profile 302 Registered at P.O. Headquarters, as a Obituaries 307 magazine. Books 315 Cover: A colony of Antarctic petrels, © No part of this publication may be reproduced in any way without the prior permission of the described by earlier expeditions, in the publishers. Rockefeller Mountains was located by a New Zealand field party last season. This photograph of two of the birds was taken by Dr Paul Broady. Antarctic Vol. 11 No. 7/12 NZARP: RockefellerMts N.Z. team finds plane wreck on frozen lake Nearly 60 years ago a Fokker Universal monoplane named Virginia became the first aircraft casualty in Antarctica. It was damaged beyond repair in a blizzard which tore the plane from its moorings on a frozen meltwater lake in the Rockefeller Mountains of Marie Byrd Land. On December 24 1987 a New Zealand geological and biological expedition which worked in the Alexandra and Rockefeller Mountains for 53 days last summer found the wrecked plane still on the frozen lake below the southern slope of Washington Ridge. It was upside down and only the tail and the lower part of the wing were buried in the ice. Most of the fabric had been torn off by fierce winds in the past 59 years but the stainless steel parts of the airframe were still gleaming. The cold, dry climate had preserved the wooden wing spars and the remains of the skis. Dr Chris Adams, of the Institute of Whitney Wasp. The pilot of the Fokker Nuclear Sciences, leader of the New was Bernt Balchen, and another pilot, Zealand expedition, and his companions, Harold June, acted as radio operator. Dr Steve Weaver (biochemist), Dr Paul In the mid-afternoon of March 7 Gould, Broady (botanist) of the University of Balchen and June flew to the Rockefellers, Canterbury, and Peter Cleary, an Antarctic landing on the frozen surface of the Division field leader, were working on meltwater lake which was actually hard nearby Mt Nilsen when they picked up blue ice thinly covered by snow. The three with binoculars a dark object at the base of men were able to start survey work the Washington Ridge. They moved down to next morning but had to halt it by noon the meltwater lake, which was showing because of high winds. Heavy snow and signs of summer warmth, and inspected winds of 28 to 46 knots made work ex the remains of the high-wing Fokker, one tremely difficult and the party had to build of three planes used on Byrd's first ex a wall of snow blocks in front of the plane pedition (1928-30). and pile more blocks on the skis and in There was no sign of the 425 h.p. Pratt front of the fuselage. and Whitney Wasp engine which had On March 13 the party was able to taken the plane on its first and last flight of complete triangulation of a peak and col 217km from Little America I in the Bay of lect geological specimens. But the winds Whales. There was a good reason for its were stronger than ever, reaching a peak absence. Other visitors to the scene of the of 78 knots in one gust, and finally a sud power crash had removed the engine, in den violent gust, estimated to reach 130 struments, and the three-bladed propeller. knots tore the Fokker from its moorings. It Virginia was flown to the Rockefellers on burst clear, rose into flight and flew March 7, 1929, because Dr Laurence backwards for more than 480m and then Gould, second-in-command of the expedi crashed on the blue ice, landing on its skis. tion, wanted to make a preliminary geo The force of the wind was so great that the logical survey of the mountains which had spinning propeller kept turning the engine been discovered on January 27 during over, and the ends of all three blades were Byrd's flight to the Alexandra Mountains in curled like corkscrews at the tips — clear Stars and Stripes, the expedition's smallest evidence of a power crash. plane, a Fairchild folding wing monoplane Although the plane had landed on its also powered by a 425 h.p. Pratt and skis and the wing was undamaged except 274 Vol 11 No. 7/12 Two views of "Virginia", a Fokker Universal Monoplane, which became the first "air" ca sualty in Antarctica nearly 60 years ago. Today she still lies on her back, with her fabric torn away but her structure, though buckled is in good condition. Photos: Peter Cleary. Antarctic Vol.11 No. 7/12 for the tips, it was a complete wreck. The with the expedition's ships at Dundein, his ski pedestals were split open, one ski was New York office, Little America, and the ripped off, and the struts were bent and four dog teams he had ordered to head for torn. In addition the tail section was the mountains when the weather at the broken, fuselage was ripped open and the base showed no signs of improving. cabin was exposed. About five o'clock on the morning of When the wind dropped and the three March 22 Hansen was told by Little men were able to reach the Fokker from America that the Fairchild was on its way. their damaged tent they found that the Smith arrived with June; three men emergency radio set had also been badly squeezed into the equipment-crowded battered. June reassembled it but could not cabin, and were back at Little America raise Little America although he could hear before 8 p.m. Gould brought back a few the base operators sending. The final blow geological specimens but had to leave his fell when the crankshaft of the hand- rock hammers behind. On the way home cranked generator broke. Three depressed the dog teams were sighted 88km out and men sat in the shattered fuselage listening signalled to return home. to Little America discussing their absence Back on the blue ice of the frozen lake with operators in New York, but unable to the wrecked Virginia remained exposed to send an explanation only 217km. the winter cold and blizzards and un disturbed until 1934. On November 15 of Landing marked that year the second Byrd expedition's By March 17 Byrd became alarmed long-distance twin-engined Curtiss-Wright about the lack of messages from Gould. Condor biplane named William Horlick But the weather at Little America was bad took off from Little America II on an ex for flying so while the Fairchild was ploration flight of 1250km which enabled grounded the base radio operators kept an Byrd to study again the mountains of emergency schedule, sending frequent Marie Byrd Land discovered in 1929. The weather reports and repeating every hour plane had a flight crew of six with Harold a message that the plane would fly out at June as chief pilot. the first break in the weather. June re ceived one of these messages just when Wreckage the party was considering trying to walk Late in the afternoon the William Horlick back to Little America. was on the homeward leg to Little America A long-awaited break in the weather II. As the plane drew near the Rockefellers came on the afternoon of March 19. The Byrd remembered the destruction of Fairchild, flown by Dean Smith with Byrd Virginia and suggested to June that the and Malcolm Hanson as radio engineer wreckage might still be visible. June was took off for the Rockefellers at 5 p.m. Two the first to sight the Fokker which, from surveys failed to reveal any trace of the the air, looked like a twisted, crumpled ball party or the Fokker. Then Smith sighted a of metal locked in the blue ice. column of smoke and a flashing light. Remarkably it was not completely buried in Balchen and June had marked out a snow after nearly six years of blizzards be landing T with flags on the ice which was cause of steady down-drafts of wind. rough. But Smith made an excellent land As the Condor flew on Byrd had an ing and kept his engine idling while idea. The Fokker had an excellent engine Balchen and June were ordered to return which could be salvaged when a small to Little America.