A Glacier Adventure with Lou Betti's Dakota...

[speedbird591]

I finally got into the loft and found my old photo box. Both are in Anchorage in the 70s.

The first is me in my parka - which wasn't quite enough protection for walking across the frozen lake to the glacier.

***WARNING!!!*** The second photo is of the Captain and The Upper 48, it's not really obscene but if the kids are looking over your shoulder, don't scroll down





On the aircraft that flew the Polar route (B707-336 and B747-236) several rows of seats were removed and replaced by pallets of survival equipment strapped down with webbing. There were lovely thick survival suits for the crew, but the ones for the punters were quite thin and basic and there were only enough for about 50% of them! There were also blankets and stoves that ran on kerosene. I don't know why they are no longer considered necessary. Maybe aircraft are more reliable or perhaps the trans-Siberian route offers friendlier conditions in which to crash

Ian

[petermcleland]

LOL!...That was obviously a very memorable great Nightstop xwink

[Garry Russell]

Yep.... a night of great mammeries

Garry

[speedbird591]

Peter - did you ever wonder what the 'Overseas Division' Captains actually did to earn their money while you were busy flying aeroplanes?

Ian

[forthbridge]

On the aircraft that flew the Polar route (B707-336 and B747-236) several rows of seats were removed and replaced by pallets of survival equipment strapped down with webbing. There were lovely thick survival suits for the crew, but the ones for the punters were quite thin and basic and there were only enough for about 50% of them! There were also blankets and stoves that ran on kerosene. I don't know why they are no longer considered necessary. Maybe aircraft are more reliable or perhaps the trans-Siberian route offers friendlier conditions in which to crash

Ian

Funny that. They used to (up until the mid '80s) carry survival stuff including flares on all the trains that ran on the Highland and West Highland lines - particularly of course in case of heavy snow. Maybe its global warming that stopped the practice on the railway at least
Saying that a train got trapped not that long ago and it needed the RAF out to airlift.

[airboatr]

now thats a pair of earwarmers!!!!!!

Yeah Baby !!!

[Paul K]

I flew the polar route to Japan via Anchorage quite a few times on BA and KLM Boeing 747s in the 80s, and the pallet of survival equipment was strapped down where the last rows of centre seats had been removed.