Intercontinental Flights
ALE facilitates an intercontinental air bridge between South America and the Ellsworth Mountains, West Antarctica. ALE operates weekly passenger and cargo flights from November through January, using an Ilyushin IL-76 TD transport aircraft with a flight time of 4 1/4 hours.
Flights depart from Presidente Carlos Ibañez del Campo airport (PUQ/SCCI) in Punta Arenas, Chile and land at Union Glacier blue-ice runway (SCGC). The Ilyushin holds 60 passengers or two shipping containers’ volume of cargo, with a total capacity of 17,500 kg. Dedicated Ilyushin flights, private jet charters and airfield support can also be arranged. All flights are weather dependent.
Ilyushin IL-76 TD
The IL-76 was originally conceived for delivering heavy machinery to remote, poorly-serviced areas of the USSR. As such it needed to meet the requirements for a heavy-lift freighter with good speed and range, able to operate from short and unprepared airstrips, and capable of coping with the worst weather conditions likely to be experienced in Siberia and the Soviet Union’s Arctic regions.
The IL-76 has seen extensive service as a commercial freighter, especially for oversized or heavy items unable to be otherwise carried. An onboard crane can self-load and offload items up to 10 tonne, without the need for specialized airport equipment. The IL-76 has been used as emergency response transport for civilian evacuations and to deliver humanitarian/disaster relief aid around the world, especially to undeveloped areas due to its ability to operate from unpaved runways. The IL-76TD has a greater range and load capacity than the original IL-76.
Private Jets
Extended range, private jets, such as the Dassault Falcon and Gulfstream families offer luxurious passenger cabins, shorter flight times, and fuel-efficient engines that minimize environmental impacts.
ALE can facilitate charter flights, or provide airfield support for your own aircraft, by prior arrangement. Please contact us well in advance of your project start date, to allow time for Antarctic authorizations and pilot familiarization.
The Ilyushin onboard-crane can lift items up to 10 tonne and our sled-mounted Hammar Lift side loader lifts items up to 25 tonne. A Hiab crane, fitted on one of our Tucker Sno-Cats, self-loads items around camp.
ALE re-supplies field teams and pre-places caches by air and by overland traverse. Our strategic location and the size of our operation help us provide cost-effective options for large and small projects. Smaller re-supplies are generally placed by ski aircraft. Where possible we combine re-supplies for several groups or include cargo on one of our scheduled program flights.
