NY Air National Guard's 109th Airlift Wing begins 37th year of support Antarctic Science

Capital Region New York Air National Guard wing will deploy five ski-equipped planes and 400 Airmen to Antarctica from October to February

SCOTIA, New York (10/18/2024) — The New York Air National Guard's 109th Airlift Wing kicked off its 37th year of supporting American Science research in Antarctica as five LC-130H "Skibirds" and 110 Airmen departed Stratton Air National Guard Base in Scotia, on October 16 and 17.

The LC-130's flown by the 109th Airlift Wing are the largest aircraft in the world which can land on snow and ice using skies.

From October through February, 400 airmen will provide support to the United States Antarctic research efforts as part of Operation Deep Freeze, the Department of Defense's annual support to the National Science Foundation's Antarctic program.

The aircraft and Airmen operate from McMurdo Station, the American Antarctic research station on the southern tip of Ross Island.

This season's effort will consist mainly of resupplying remote science camps in the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, the Siple Dome Field Camp, and supporting the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, according to Col. Robert Donaldson, the wing commander.

The Siple Domes Field Camp is 507 miles away from McMurdo Station, while the South Pole Station is 850 from McMurdo. The West Antarctic Ice Sheet Station is 1,000 miles from McMurdo Station.

"As we begin Operation Deep Freeze in Antarctica, our mission-ready airmen anticipate the unique challenges of this extreme environment." Donaldson said. "The efforts of our airmen are critical to scientific research and demonstrate the force projection capability of the LC-130 aircraft."

Lt. Col. Drew Brewer, the 109th Operations Group, deputy commander, who has been flying these missions for 21 years, told local station WTEN that the flying is challenging.

"When a storm rolls in and everything goes white, you can't tell the difference between the sky and the ground; it's like being inside of a ping pong ball," Brewer said.

While C-17 Globemaster III transports and other aircraft fly to McMurdo, the LC-130s have the capability to fly inside the continent, according to wing leaders.

Their special capabilities have also been vital to keeping McMurdo Station itself sustained.

In 2014, the ice runway at McMurdo was too soft for wheeled aircraft to use, so the 109th Airlift Wing's LC-130s had to move 1,100 people and tons of equipment from Antarctica to New Zealand on board the ski-equipped planes.

During the 2023-2024 support season, the unit completed a total of 114 missions. Sixty-two of those were to and from locations on the continent. Fifty-two were trips between Antarctica and New Zealand.

A total of 1,100 tons of cargo, 1,500 passengers and 68,000 gallons of fuel were moved throughout the season.

"We are committed to the mission's success, and through careful planning in support of the joint cause, we continue to showcase the resilience and capabilities of our force in this austere region," Donaldson said.

The flight from New York to Christchurch, New Zealand, where the wing maintains an operating station, takes approximately five days. Most of the Airmen travel commercially to New Zealand and then fly to Antarctica on board military aircraft.

Airmen rotate through the mission throughout the support season.

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