The Antarctic Flight was a

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

(RAAF) aircraft

flight Flight or flying is the process by which an object moves through a space without contacting any planetary surface, either within an atmosphere (i.e. air flight or aviation) or through the vacuum of outer space (i.e. spaceflight). This can be a ...

. It operated from

RAAF Base Laverton "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

and

Mawson Station The Mawson Station, commonly called Mawson, is one of three permanent bases and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Mawson lies in Holme Bay in Mac. Robertson Land, East Antarctica in the Austra ...

. The flight was responsible for expeditions and rescue missions in

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...

. Two ski fitted RAAF

Auster AOP.6 The Auster AOP.6 was a British military air observation aircraft produced by Auster Aircraft Limited to replace the numerous wartime Taylorcraft Auster aircraft then in-service. History The Auster AOP.6 (Auster Model K) was designed as a succe ...

(A11-200 & A11-201) were based at

from 1952. On 5 March 1954, A11-200 was lost over the side of a ship. Later the flight included two

DHC-2 Beaver The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver is a single-engined high-wing propeller-driven short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft developed and manufactured by de Havilland Canada. It has been primarily operated as a bush plane and has been used ...

s and one

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Dakota, Minnesota, ...

aircraft. After 1963, the RAAF planes were withdrawn. Following this time RAAF aircraft have continued to operate infrequently in support of activities in the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands. These have included a number of flights using

C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 ...

in the 1970s and 1980s into

McMurdo Sound McMurdo Sound is a sound in Antarctica. It is the southernmost navigable body of water in the world, and is about from the South Pole. Captain James Clark Ross discovered the sound in February 1841, and named it after Lt. Archibald McMurdo ...

and more recently C-17 Globemasters to Wilkins Aerodrome near

Casey Station Casey Station, commonly called Casey, is one of three permanent stations and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Casey lies on the northern side of the Bailey Peninsula (Antarctica), Bailey Peninsu ...

in late 2015 and early 2016.

Notes

References

* {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 RAAF independent flights Aviation in Antarctica Australia and the Antarctic Military units and formations established in 1948 Military units and formations disestablished in 1963 1948 establishments in Antarctica 1948 establishments in Australia 1963 disestablishments in Antarctica 1963 disestablishments in Australia