While not an event about the cryosphere per se, the largest passenger plane to land on the continent of Antarctica is certainly interesting! On 15 November 2023, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner of Norse Atlantic Airways landed at the Troll Airfield in Queen Maud Land, Antarctica (Figure 1). There were 45 scientists from the Norwegian Polar Institute (NPI) and 12 tonnes of research equipment on this plane that can transport, in other circumstances, 330 passengers. The “blue ice runway” was 3,000 meters (9840 feet) long and 60 meters (100 feet) wide on glacial ice. NPI contracted the flight to the Troll research station (Figure 2). Using larger aircraft like the 787 may result in fewer flights to the continent, thereby reducing the environmental footprint.

Figure 1: The Norse Atlantic Airways Boeing 787 Dreamliner landing at Troll Airfield, Antarctica, on 15 November 2023. (Photo taken from a video by the Norwegian Polar Institute.)
Figure 2: The location of the Troll research station. (Google Maps)

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