OREANDA-NEWS. UTair Aviation Eurocopter BO 105 helicopter joined the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute expedition organized by State Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute.

The UTair helicopter is outfitted with special equipment for conducting operations in the polar conditions and departed to participate in the project from the deck of the diesel-electric icebreaker Capitan Dranizyn. The UTair crew has as its objectives visual ice reconnaissance, surveillance flights for research and facing practical challenges of flight operations including take-off and landing on a moving ship. The highly experienced crew is specially trained in high latitude operations and deck flying.

Previously, in July 2011, a UTair BO 105 helicopter took part in escorting the icebreaker Capitan Dranizyn on its way to  the Franz Josef Land archipelago – the nearest landmass to the North Pole in the Eastern hemisphere.