In recent days, with the last landing on the Antarctic pack of the C-130J of the 46th Air Brigade of Pisa, the airlift that the Italian Air Force ensured as part of a collaboration agreement with the National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Development (ENEA) for logistical support to the 40th Italian expedition underway in Antarctica was concluded.
The crews of the 46th Air Brigade, 36 military personnel including flight crews, technicians and specialists trained to operate in extreme climatic and environmental conditions and in this specific case on icy runways, ensured – in accordance with the needs represented by ENEA – the transport of passengers, materials and vehicles to the Antarctic continent with a C-130J aircraft.
In particular, the Italian Air Force aircraft ensured the transport of approximately 43 tons of material and over 200 technicians and researchers from ENEA, completing approximately 80 hours of flight time between the Christchurch base in New Zealand and the US base at McMurdo and Terranova Bay in Antarctica, for subsequent transfer to the Italian Mario Zucchelli base.
The Italian Air Force returned to Antarctica with its aircraft in 2019 after twenty years. In particular, the crews of the 46th Air Brigade landed with the C-130J transport aircraft, an asset that has since replaced the C-130H “Hercules” that had flown in the southern hemisphere.
The C-130J aircraft and the personnel of the 46th Air Brigade returned to the Pisa Air Force Base on Sunday 1 December.
The contribution of the 46th Air Brigade confirms the ability of the Air Force to guarantee long-distance transport from Italy and represents a concrete demonstration of projection and logistical support.
The Air Force also continues to support, together with the specialized personnel of the other Armed Forces, the 40th Italian expedition to Antarctica, with CNR, ENEA and within the framework of the National Research Program in Antarctica (PNRA).
The Armed Forces participate in the expedition with 18 military experts from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Carabinieri. They will support the researchers in the field throughout the expedition, making both external and underwater campaigns possible and safe, as well as air operations thanks to the expertise of weather forecasters and air traffic controllers.
The Air Force with the technical staff of the infrastructure service of the logistics command has also contributed in previous expeditions to the construction of a semi-prepared runway Boulder Clay, which in the future could be used for air transport when climatic conditions do not allow the use of the runway on the Antarctic pack ice.
