First Antarctic passenger flight leaves Hobart
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The Airbus 3-19 is flying the first passengers from Hobart to the Antarctic. (Australian Antarctic Division: Dan Colbourne)
The first passenger flight to the Antarctic has just left Hobart.
The Airbus 3-19 will take four-and-a-half hours and will land at Wilkins runway, about 70 kilometres from Casey Station.
The runway is made of 500-metre-thick glacial ice and is four kilometres long.
The aircraft is carrying Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett and a group of scientists and officials from the Australian Antarctic Division.
It will be on the ground for about two-and-a-half hours before it returns late tomorrow morning.
Snow delayed the scheduled departure of the Airbus 3-19 yesterday but now the weather has improved.
Until now, scientists have had to travel to Antarctica by ship and a one-way trip can take weeks.
The journey marks the beginning of a new era of scientific exploration.
