© Photo: Вести.Ru
All 52 passengers were airlifted Thursday from a Russian research vessel icebound in Antarctica and are safe on board an Australian supply ship, rescuers said. "Aurora Australis has advised AMSA that the 52 passengers from the Akademik Shokalskiy are now on board," the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said. Passengers were flown to the Australian ship in groups of 12 by a helicopter from a Chinese icebreaker. The Akademik Shokalsky has been stuck in ice since December 24 100 nautical miles east of the French base Dumont d'Urville, with several icebreaking attempts failing to reach it. After a number of false starts a helicopter evacuation of the research vessel's passengers began on Thursday evening, with official confirmation that it was underway reaching AMSA at 6.15 pm Australian time (0715 GMT). The Australian agency, which is coordinating the rescue mission, reported all passengers were safey on board the Aurora Australis - an Australian government supply ship - at 10.15pm, some four hours later. Passengers were airlifted from a makeshift landing pad on the ice beside the Russian ship to an ice floe near the Australis. Expedition leader Chris Turney expressed relief that the wait was finally over. "We've made it to the Aurora Australis safe and sound. A huge thanks to the Chinese and the (government's) Australian Antarctic Division for all their hard work," Turney tweeted. First passengers of stranded Shoklasky brought to Australian ship, The first batch of 12 Antarctic-stranded passengers has been
The Akademik Shokalsky has been stranded in the Antarctic since Christmas, © Photo: www.antarktis.ru
flown to the Australian rescue ship, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority says. The decision to evacuate tourists came Monday after Australian rescuers failed to make it to the Russian vessel, which is stuck in Antarctic’s thick pack ice. Russia’s foreign ministry said earlier it kept in touch with the Akademik Shokalsky’s crew who told them all 52 passengers were doing well and there was no threat to their lives. Akademik Shokalskiy: Antarctic helicopter rescue underway at icebound ship, A helicopter mission to rescue 52 passengers trapped on an icebound Russian research ship finally got underway in Antarctica Thursday after a number of false starts and failed icebreaking attempts. A Chinese helicopter has begun to evacuate first passengers of the Akademik Shokalskiy vessel, which has been trapped in thick pack ice in the Antarctic. The first 12 tourists were taken aboard the chopper at 8:08 pm local time, the ship’s captain
said. The aircraft, called Snow Eagle, was shipped to the scene on the deck of the Chinese icebreaker Snow Dragon. The stranded Russian ship is carrying 74 people, including a crew of 22 Russians and 52 scientists from the Australasian Antarctic Expedition. The crew said they will stay on the ship, while the tourists are being evacuated. The MV Akademik Shokalskiy has been trapped in thick pack ice 100 nautical miles east of the French base Dumont d'Urville since December 24, with several icebreakers forced back to open water by impenetrable floes. A helicopter rescue was announced on Tuesday, but heavy rain and winds saw it shelved until Thursday morning, when a second attempt was foiled by unfavourable sea ice. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said the complex, multi-vessel operation would go ahead as soon as weather and ice conditions permitted, with the situation likely to change rapidly. By late afternoon a favourable window had opened, with expedition leader Chris Turney announcing that a helicopter from thenearby Chinese icebreaker Xue Long had arrived at the marooned ship to begin evacuating passengers. "The Chinese helicopter has arrived at the Shokalskiy. It's 100 percent we're off! A huge thanks to all," Turney tweeted. His posting was accompanied by footage showing the Xue Long's red helicopter touching down on a landing pad marked out on the ice beside the Akademik Shokalskiy and an orange-suited rescue crew disembarking. "If it all goes well we'll be off in about an hour's time," Turney said on the film. AMSA said it was awaiting formal confirmation from the Xue Long that the Antarctica rescue operation had begun. It is expected to take at least five hours to ferry all passengers from the icebound vessel to the Xue Long - 10 nautical miles distant - by helicopter, with five flights of up to 12 passengers and a return journey taking 45 minutes. Under the aerial rescue plan outlined by AMSA earlier Thursday the passengers will be moved from the Xue Long to Australia's Antarctic supply ship the Aurora Australis via a barge. It will be some weeks before they reach dry land, with the Australis having to travel via Australia's Casey Antarctic base to refuel. There will be two additional flights to transfer equipment and luggage, and the ship's 22 crew will remain on board until the ice breaks up and the Shokalskiy can sail on under her own steam. The ship is well provisioned and those on board have not been in any danger. The helicopter operation follows several failed icebreaking attempts, with the Xue Long, Aurora Australis and French-flagged L'Astrolabe all forced to turn back by thick ice that they could not break through. Passengers on the stranded ship - an eclectic mix of scientists, tourists and journalists - had been following in the footsteps of Australian Sir Douglas Mawson and his 1911-1914 expedition. The team has been carrying out the same scientific experiments that Mawson's group conducted during their expedition, partly in an attempt to discover how quickly the Antarctic's sea ice is disappearing. Board games, first-aid and other skills courses and walks on the ice have helped to pass the time. They even penned a theme song about their adventure and filmed themselves singing it on the top deck. Though they are in remote Antarctica the group dropped in on one of the world's biggest New Year's parties, broadcasting live to celebrations in New York's Times Square from their marooned vessel. Rescue of ice-bound Antarctic ship under way - expedition chief The helicopter evacuation of a Russian research ship stranded in Antarctica was launched Thursday after a series of stalled attempts due to bad weather and sea ice. "The Chinese helicopter has arrived at the Shokalskiy. It's 100 percent we're off! A huge thanks to all," tweeted expedition leader Chris Turney. Passenger rescue at stranded Russian ship to start soon Maritime authorities in Australia said Thursday that operations to rescue passengers on a Russian research ship trapped by ice in the Antarctic Seawill commence soon. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said in a statement that weather conditions in the area in which the Akademik Shokalskiy is stranded have improved, enabling rescue operations by helicopter. "Wind in the area is now down to 10 knots and visibility has improved. Weather conditions are expected to remain
favorable over the next 36 hours," the statement said. The rescue helicopter will be dispatched from the Chinese-flagged vessel Xue Long, situated around 12 nautical miles (22 kilometers) from the Akademik Shokalskiy, AMSA said. While all 52 passengers are to be evacuated, the 22 crew members will remain onboard. "The passengers will be rescued by helicopter in groups of 12 and will be initially transported to the Xue Long," AMSA said in its statement. The rescue trips by helicopter are expected to take a minimum of five hours, depending on weather conditions. The team of scientists and tourists on the Akademik Shokalskiy had been retracing a famous Australian Antarctic Expedition from 101 years ago. The fare for tourists was $15,000 apiece, according to the Expeditions Online tour agency website. The agency described the ship, built by a Finnish shipyard for the Soviet Union in 1982 for polar research, as "fully ice-strengthened." Voice of Russia, RIA, AFP. Source: Voice Of Russia,
said. The aircraft, called Snow Eagle, was shipped to the scene on the deck of the Chinese icebreaker Snow Dragon. The stranded Russian ship is carrying 74 people, including a crew of 22 Russians and 52 scientists from the Australasian Antarctic Expedition. The crew said they will stay on the ship, while the tourists are being evacuated. The MV Akademik Shokalskiy has been trapped in thick pack ice 100 nautical miles east of the French base Dumont d'Urville since December 24, with several icebreakers forced back to open water by impenetrable floes. A helicopter rescue was announced on Tuesday, but heavy rain and winds saw it shelved until Thursday morning, when a second attempt was foiled by unfavourable sea ice. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said the complex, multi-vessel operation would go ahead as soon as weather and ice conditions permitted, with the situation likely to change rapidly. By late afternoon a favourable window had opened, with expedition leader Chris Turney announcing that a helicopter from thenearby Chinese icebreaker Xue Long had arrived at the marooned ship to begin evacuating passengers. "The Chinese helicopter has arrived at the Shokalskiy. It's 100 percent we're off! A huge thanks to all," Turney tweeted. His posting was accompanied by footage showing the Xue Long's red helicopter touching down on a landing pad marked out on the ice beside the Akademik Shokalskiy and an orange-suited rescue crew disembarking. "If it all goes well we'll be off in about an hour's time," Turney said on the film. AMSA said it was awaiting formal confirmation from the Xue Long that the Antarctica rescue operation had begun. It is expected to take at least five hours to ferry all passengers from the icebound vessel to the Xue Long - 10 nautical miles distant - by helicopter, with five flights of up to 12 passengers and a return journey taking 45 minutes. Under the aerial rescue plan outlined by AMSA earlier Thursday the passengers will be moved from the Xue Long to Australia's Antarctic supply ship the Aurora Australis via a barge. It will be some weeks before they reach dry land, with the Australis having to travel via Australia's Casey Antarctic base to refuel. There will be two additional flights to transfer equipment and luggage, and the ship's 22 crew will remain on board until the ice breaks up and the Shokalskiy can sail on under her own steam. The ship is well provisioned and those on board have not been in any danger. The helicopter operation follows several failed icebreaking attempts, with the Xue Long, Aurora Australis and French-flagged L'Astrolabe all forced to turn back by thick ice that they could not break through. Passengers on the stranded ship - an eclectic mix of scientists, tourists and journalists - had been following in the footsteps of Australian Sir Douglas Mawson and his 1911-1914 expedition. The team has been carrying out the same scientific experiments that Mawson's group conducted during their expedition, partly in an attempt to discover how quickly the Antarctic's sea ice is disappearing. Board games, first-aid and other skills courses and walks on the ice have helped to pass the time. They even penned a theme song about their adventure and filmed themselves singing it on the top deck. Though they are in remote Antarctica the group dropped in on one of the world's biggest New Year's parties, broadcasting live to celebrations in New York's Times Square from their marooned vessel. Rescue of ice-bound Antarctic ship under way - expedition chief The helicopter evacuation of a Russian research ship stranded in Antarctica was launched Thursday after a series of stalled attempts due to bad weather and sea ice. "The Chinese helicopter has arrived at the Shokalskiy. It's 100 percent we're off! A huge thanks to all," tweeted expedition leader Chris Turney. Passenger rescue at stranded Russian ship to start soon Maritime authorities in Australia said Thursday that operations to rescue passengers on a Russian research ship trapped by ice in the Antarctic Seawill commence soon. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said in a statement that weather conditions in the area in which the Akademik Shokalskiy is stranded have improved, enabling rescue operations by helicopter. "Wind in the area is now down to 10 knots and visibility has improved. Weather conditions are expected to remain
favorable over the next 36 hours," the statement said. The rescue helicopter will be dispatched from the Chinese-flagged vessel Xue Long, situated around 12 nautical miles (22 kilometers) from the Akademik Shokalskiy, AMSA said. While all 52 passengers are to be evacuated, the 22 crew members will remain onboard. "The passengers will be rescued by helicopter in groups of 12 and will be initially transported to the Xue Long," AMSA said in its statement. The rescue trips by helicopter are expected to take a minimum of five hours, depending on weather conditions. The team of scientists and tourists on the Akademik Shokalskiy had been retracing a famous Australian Antarctic Expedition from 101 years ago. The fare for tourists was $15,000 apiece, according to the Expeditions Online tour agency website. The agency described the ship, built by a Finnish shipyard for the Soviet Union in 1982 for polar research, as "fully ice-strengthened." Voice of Russia, RIA, AFP. Source: Voice Of Russia,
