Has anyone here flown a Cub they built to the North Pole, North Pole?

When I built my first PA12, 3788m, I built it with the dream of flying a plane I built to the top of the world.

Needless to say; marriage, kids, and a horrific automobile accident put the kabash on those plans.

But I was wondering; has anyone less encumbered actually made the trip.

After all, it's only about 3000 miles each way from Chicago--even less from Northern Wisconsin.

Are you sure you won't settle for the magnetic North Pole? I've been out over the ice, not a very friendly place for man or machine. You will encounter low fog that sticks to your plane and freezes up your carb. The ice world is always rotating and constantly cracking and smashing into itself. If you break down, there is no help. The Polar Bear is king of the land, with his strong sense of smell and never ending hunger, you will be his next meal! The wind is constantly blowing and will obscure the ice in a whiteout. Need I go on?

nanook said:

Are you sure you won't settle for the magnetic North Pole? I've been out over the ice, not a very friendly place for man or machine. You will encounter low fog that sticks to your plane and freezes up your carb. The ice world is always rotating and constantly cracking and smashing into itself. If you break down, there is no help. The Polar Bear is king of the land, with his strong sense of smell and never ending hunger, you will be his next meal! The wind is constantly blowing and will obscure the ice in a whiteout. Need I go on?

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Other than that, it'd be a really cool flight....... Oh, and there are no gas stations.

MTV

I've actually contemplated doing it. But then I quit drinking!

The best month to try would be May, when the days are long and weather only marginally "severe". Logistics, particularly fuel, would be daunting ...and expensive. North of Resolute Bay accommodations are non-existent. Best done on wheel-skis or big tundra tires, of course. There's a likelihood that landing conditions at the precise north pole would not be favourable, but you should be able to get close enough (within a few miles) that nobody would care. You'd likely need fuel positioned near the pole, with a beacon on the cache so you could find it as the cache will move with the ice. You might have to make several attempts for the pole from the nearest landing strip (Ward Hunt Island) since you won't know the weather conditions 400 miles north at the pole.

There's a good chance you'll lose your airplane, so your insurance company might want to consider your destination and if they'll insure you. $100,000 in SAR insurance would be nice to have!

If you're serious about this, you might have to find a sponsor or two to help with the costs. Kenn Borek Air are the masters of arctic and Antarctic Twin Otter ops. They have a base in Resolute Bay and fly regularly to the pole.

It's "only" 1,400 miles from my house to the pole. If I were to try it I'd want to fly with another aircraft.

There was an expedition with AN-2s twenty some years back. Find the movie... but don't let your family see it if you consider doing it.

http://www.amazon.com/Polar-Pilot-Carl-Eilson-Story/dp/0813429366 I thought this was a cool book, might even been a few hints in here on how to stay alive?

aktango58 said:

There was an expedition with AN-2s twenty some years back. Find the movie... but don't let your family see it if you consider doing it.

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An acquaintance of mine lost his beautiful AN-2 though the ice near the pole about 20-years ago. He was ferrying it from Russia, accompanied by a Cessna 180. The AN-2 is still there, at the bottom of the arctic ocean.

You could spend twenty or thirty thousand dollars just to position your fuel. 100 LL is not available in the high arctic. You'd have to bring in the drums to Resolute Bay the previous summer by ship and have Kenn Borek position the following spring in at least three places farther north, as well as the pole. Depending on your route you might also need fuel cached at locations farther south too. Few arctic communities have 100LL for sale.

But then again theres people that try to walk and swim up there.http://www.thejournal.ie/north-pole-irish-walk-1299245-Feb2014/

Art lives in Manley Hot Springs AK, I'd think even in a 185 it's quite a trip. He's at Air Venture sometimes and you can sit and chat with him next the the Orange Pumpkin. They also run a camp in the Brooks range. Not a trip in a Cub but some neat info in his website.

http://polarflight90.com/

And, even tougher, Art took that 185 to the SOUTH pole..... I heard the airplane's in a museum now??

MTV

I know a guy that has done the north pole trip twice I believe. It was on one of those trips the Antonov was lost. Something about going through a frozen lead that wasnt thick enough. Anyway, if you are interested enough, I think he would be willing to talk to you about the trip. He is a master story teller who should work for the History Chanel. P.M. me

Stearman to the North Pole, must have been a cold ride. Jim http://www.gazette.net/gazette_archive/2000/200016/montgomerycty/county/8669-1.html