US Air Force plane turns back from Antarctica after Russian missile threat
New Zealand officials sought more details after the Civil Aviation Authority warned of possible debris from Russian aerospace activity, prompting the flight to divert.
- On Tuesday, a United States Air Force C-17 Globemaster with call sign ICE28 aborted its flight to Antarctica and returned to Christchurch Airport after two hours and 27 minutes in the air.
- The Russian State Air Traffic Management Corporation notified the Civil Aviation Authority of a planned missile launch and associated potential hazard to international airspace within New Zealand's Oceanic Flight Information Region.
- Turnarounds during the annual Winter Flight Period are known as 'boomerangs,' and a 43-person Scott Base crew experienced two such turnarounds in 2023 before reaching Antarctica on their third attempt.
- Foreign Minister Winston Peters is following the issue closely, while the Civil Aviation Authority advised operators to 'make their decisions based on the information available.'
- The United States Air Force has yet to release an official statement, and details of the Russian notice remain unclear despite precedent: in November 2022, a Chinese Long March 5B rocket core stage fell over Spain, prompting multiple airspace closures.
23 Articles
23 Articles
US Air Force plane turns back from Antarctica after “potentially hazardous” space activity warning
US Air Force plane turns back from Antarctica after “potentially hazardous” space activity warning Click this link for the original source of this article. Author: The Hill This content is courtesy of, and owned and copyrighted by, https://www.offthepress.com and its author. This content is made available by use of the public RSS feed offered by...
Mysterious Russian 'space activity' causes US Air Force flight to Antarctica to turn around: report
A mysterious incident over the southern Indian Ocean forced a U.S. Air Force aircraft to turn around due to an unnamed hazard in space.According to several New Zealand-based news outlets, a U.S. Air Force (USAF) C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft left Christchurch Airport on New Zealand's South Island on Tuesday (Aug. 18) bound for McMurdo Station in Antarctica. Aircraft trackers using flight radar software noticed the C-17 turn around over the…
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