31st of October
Historical
Antarctic Pictures and Events
Operation Deep Freeze 1, led by Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd, 1955 - 56
1956 - A Douglas DC-3 named Que Sera Sera (named after a popular song at the time), piloted by Lieutenant Commander Gus Shinn and under the command of Rear Admiral George Dufek, becomes the first aircraft to land at the South Pole, the crew of seven are the first to stand there since Scott's party in 1912. It leads to the establishment of Amundsen-Scott Station over the 1956-1957 season, part of International Geophysical Year
Reaching the pole and landing were fairly uneventful but taking off again at the south polar altitude of 10,000ft with reduced oxygen for the engines and thinner air for lift was more of an issue. The aircraft was equipped with JATO (Jet Assisted Take Off) bottles, rocket-boosters which were used to provide some temporary extra thrust. Initially even at full power the aircraft didn't move let alone take-off, firing four JATO bottles broke the plane free leaving just enough left for take-off.
Que Sera Sera is today displayed at The National Naval Aviation Museum at Pensacola, Florida
