[ad_1]
South China morning post
China’s Antarctic expedition joins medical evacuation operation to make Australia sick
A complex international operation is underway in Antarctica to evacuate an Australian expeditionary with the help of China and the United States. The Australian Antarctic Program said on Monday that two separate ice rinks were being built as part of a complex operation to transport the patient from Australia. Davis Research Station in Antarctica back to Australia. The patient has a medical condition that is not related to Covid-19. Get the latest insights and analysis from our global impact newsletter on the great stories originating from China. Kim Ellis, director of the Australian Antarctic Division, said the medical evacuation process relied on aviation support from the Chinese and US Antarctic programs. Australia does not have its own intracontinental aviation this southern summer – in Antarctica the summer is from October to March – due to fear of spreading Covid-19 to the icy continent. “This operation is a testament to the strong international cooperation that exists in Antarctica, where nations come together and support each other in what can be a hostile and challenging environment,” Ellis said. “We are very pleased that this first stage of this multi-phase operation, which involves helicopters, planes and ships, is underway.” Why tourists and scientists are in the same boat in Antarctica Personnel in Antarctica will take three to five days to build a runway on the ice plateau behind Davis Station, according to the Australian Antarctic Program. A helicopter from the nearby Chinese icebreaker Xue Long 2 helped fly a team of five, along with more than 1 ton (1.1 ton) of equipment, to the Davis Ski Landing area late Sunday. A Chinese helicopter will also be used to transport the Australian patient to the inner runway at Davis Station, according to Ellis. Xue Long 2 was heading to the Chinese Zhongshan Research Station on the mainland after leaving New Zealand late last month. An airstrip is being built, another glacial runway will be built some 1,400 km (870 miles) away at Australia’s Wilkins Airfield, the Antarctic terminal where planes first land on the continent. Are China and the United States fighting for position at the highest point in Antarctica? Ellis said the medical evacuation plan included a US Basler plane taking off from McMurdo Station, the main US station in Antarctica, for Wilkins Airfield in the coming days. An Australian doctor will join the crew on board, and the Basler will land on the newly built runway near Davis to pick up the patient, before returning to Wilkins, he said. “Of course, overlapping this whole operation is the factor that we can’t control, which is the Antarctic weather, but we expect the weather windows at both locations to line up,” Ellis said. From Wilkins Airfield, the patient will fly in a Airbus A319 to the Australian city of Hobart, or should wait to return to Australia by boat “if the ice temperatures are not cold enough for a larger plane to land,” he said. The Wilkins facility operates between October and March. in the Antarctic summer, but has to shut down for six weeks during the summer peak due to warmer temperatures causing melting below the surface. The Australian Antarctic Program said it had taken Covid-19 precautions, including quarantine, social distancing and deep cleaning of airplanes, and that the crews of the American and Chinese airplanes also had Spanish media reported that The coronavirus reached the continent for the first time, when 36 people at O’Higgins’ research base in Chile tested positive for Covid-19 on Monday. They have since been evacuated to Chile.The cooperative operation between Australia, China and the US comes despite ongoing tensions between Beijing and Canberra, as well as between Beijing and Washington over strategic issues on trade, technology and claims of Chinese repression in Hong Kong, Xinjiang. and the South China Sea. More from South China Morning Post: * Are China and the United States fighting for position at the highest point in Antarctica? * China will begin construction of the first permanent airfield in Antarctica * Chinese polar research ship Snow Dragon crashes into an iceberg in Antarctica * Will China fulfill its ecological commitment to protect Antarctica? * Antarctica’s snow is slowly turning green – here’s why This article China’s Antarctic expedition joins medical evacuation operation to make Australian home sick first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest South China Morning Post news, download our mobile app. Copyright 2020.
