LC-130 aircrew completes South Pole mission despite extreme weather conditions
This LC-130 “Skibird” crew landed at the South Pole Station with minimum visibility and maximum crosswinds, and then were forced to make an emergency weather divert to Terra Nova Bay when extreme weather made it unsafe to land at McMurdo Station on Nov. 9, 2017. The crew (from left): 1st Lt. Brian Alexander, co-pilot; Airman 1st Class Ryan Rhoads, loadmaster; Lt. Col. Ronald Ankabrandt, navigator; Senior Master Sgt. Michael Messineo, flight engineer; Senior Master Sgt. David Vesper, loadmaster; and Capt. Brandon Caldwell, pilot. The 139th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron crew and LC-130 are deployed to Antarctica in support of Operation Deep Freeze, the logistical support provided by the Department of Defense to the U.S. Antarctic Program. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Catharine Schmidt)