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RonTom Adventures - Antarctica By Ron B and Tom O What is RonTom? We are two "Old Timers" with a passion for aviation and a penchant for telling stories. The result is some aviation/flightsim storytelling based on some real-world locations that we think are fun and/or interesting. We hope that this semi-regular feature will inspire you to learn or explore or fly somewhere new. (If you have locations that you'd like to have us visit, please feel free to e-mail: [email]rontomsimmers@gmail.com[/email]). Into The White It is the fifth-largest continent, nearly twice the size of Australia, and on average the coldest, driest, and windiest place on the planet. It has the highest average elevation. It is, for the most part, a polar desert, with annual precipitation of 200 mm (8 in) along the coast and far less inland. At the same time, about 70% of the world's freshwater reserves are frozen here. With an average ice thickness of 1.9 km (1.2 mi; 6,200 feet), Antarctica holds the record for the lowest temperature on Earth, measured to be -89.2 C (-128.6 F). The average for the third quarter (the coldest part of the year) is -63 C (-81 F). Native species include penguins, seals, mites, nematodes, and tardigrades. Vegetation consists of only tundra. Captain James Cook's ships, HMS Resolution and Adventure, crossed the Antarctic Circle in January 1773, December 1773, and again in January 1774. Cook came within about 120 km (75 mi) of the Antarctic coast before retreating in the face of field ice in January 1773. In 1775, Cook called the existence of a polar continent "probable" and in another copy of his journal he wrote: "(I) firmly believe it and it's more than probable that we have seen a part of it". In 1895 the first confirmed landing was accomplished by a Norwegian team. Shackleton parties in 1907, became the first to reach the magnetic pole. Roald Amundsen became the first to reach the geographic pole in 1911, and Richard E. Byrd led four geographical and scientific research expeditions to Antarctica during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. It was not until October 31, 1956, that a U.S. Navy group led by Rear Admiral George J. Dufek successfully landed an aircraft at the South Pole. Today, Antarctica is governed by about 30 countries, all of which are parties to the 1959 Antarctic Treaty System. According to the terms of the treaty, military activity, mining, nuclear explosions and nuclear waste disposal are all prohibited. The treaty set aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve, and established freedom of scientific investigation and environmental protection. Sovereignty over regions of Antarctica is claimed by seven countries. While a few of these countries have mutually recognized each other's claims, the validity of these claims is not recognized universally. As of 2022, 29 countries maintain 70 research stations in Antarctica, though most of these only fully operate in the summer. In the summer more than 4,000 scientists populate the place; which decreases to just over 1,000 in the winter. McMurdo Station, which is the largest research station in Antarctica, is capable of housing more than 1,000 scientists, visitors, and tourists. Researchers include biologists, geologists, oceanographers, physicists, astronomers, glaciologists, and meteorologists. Small-scale 'expedition tourism' has existed since 1957 and is currently subject to Antarctic Treaty and Environmental Protocol provisions. Travel is largely by small or medium ship, focusing on specific scenic locations with accessible concentrations of iconic wildlife. Sightseeing flights (which did not land) operated out of Australia and New Zealand until the fatal crash of Air New Zealand Flight 901 in the Mount Erebus disaster in 1979. Qantas resumed commercial overflights (https://www.antarcticaflights.com.au/) to Antarctica from Australia in the mid-1990s. Enough history and research for now. Time for some adventure. I've found an NSF LC-130 flight to jump on from New Zealand to McMurdo Station. See you on the ice! The Adventure The food was steaming hot, the breeze was colder than expected and the Mediterranean was blue - so very blue. As we reflected on our time in Spain I asked Tom what he was thinking for our next destination. "South" was his only response. "Like, Mallorca or like Tunisia?" "Further." "Rwanda? I loved my time in Rwanda. Too bad FS sucks at portraying Africa!" Tom silently rolled his eyes before placing his fork on the table. "All the way south" he said. "Antarctica HAS to be a place that anyone considered an 'Adventurer' would want to go. So, RonTom ADVENTURES is going." With that, he finished his meal in silence. Okay, dude, the last time I tried to fly something in Antarctica (it is a long ways from ANYTHING) it was too big of an aircraft and too rugged a runway and navigation sucks and it's so dang windy and it's just ... white like, every day! So actually, what I remember more than all of that is that there were some tall mountains around wherever I was. So I looked, the tallest peak on Antarctica is Mt. Vinson at 16,050 feet. Wow! That's taller than Washington's Mt. Rainier. Additionally, this HAS to be a typo! "The elevation at the South Pole is 9,300 feet above sea level." Whaaaaaat? That's 4,000 feet higher than Denver! Okay, now I was curious. Europe ranges from sea level to >14,000 feet with an average of 764 feet. North America ranges from below sea level (Salton Sea, CA) to >16,000 feet with an average of 938 feet. South America with its Andes Mountains ranges from 0 feet to >17,000 feet with an average of ... 397 feet. That must be a result of the Amazon Basin! Africa has less really high and less really low land with an average elevation of around 2,000 feet. Considerably higher than the Americas or Europe. Asia is even higher (cough Tibet cough) with an average elevation of 3,120 feet. But the "uninhabited" Continent of Antarctica has an average elevation of ... That can't be right! Checking several sources ... What the ... ? Antarctica has an average elevation of 8,200 feet!? Where is that "mind blown imoji"? Okay, so, anyway, we head off to one of FSX's "McMurdo Stations". Have you seen this video? From McMurdo I hopped into the now-infamous "RonTom Adventures Amphibian" and headed west towards the highest terrain that I could see. Hang on ... "Houston, we have a problem!" ... When I put WEST into the GPS my aircraft flies towards Samoa. I turn the heading knob 180° to EAST and my aircraft turns towards Cape Town. Neither of these directions heads me over the mountains of Antarctica! So, I am left with keeping the map view / GPS open and turning my heading towards the terrain irregardless of what the GPS heading says. Good ol FSX ... The closer I get to the mountains the less impressive they look. Finally I turned back and returned to McMurdo after a 90-minute flight. Next up I loaded all of the fuel (plus some extra) into a Penguin-livery 737-500 and set in a route to the southernmost FS VOR at Marambio (SAWB). This is around 2,000 miles. I headed off without an issue, climbed to altitude and set in the GPS routing. Despite the suggested heading, the aircraft nose always tended to point a bit more northward. Some hours later I was able to fly past the Mt. Vinson area and was able to confirm that it is both high and featureless! As I started my descent, I called Marambio Station and was told that they were closed! Clouded over ... IFR ... No go! Well, I needed fuel but not desperately so I continued a few hundred more miles to Isla Rey Jorge (SCRM) where I was able to land safely before the impending storms. You'll see some lightning on my video and notice the low-speed, SLOGGY approach to the short, frozen runway. But, by some miracle we had survived Tom's Polar Challenge. How about we don't do this again?

Antarctica Volume 1 - British Rothera and BeyondPublisher: AerosoftReview Author: Stuart McGregorSuggested Price: $14.99/images/fsc/wbicons/store-buy-now-button.png /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-03.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-02.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-05.jpgIntroductionWelcome to Antarctica, and to be moreprecise, Antarctica Volume 1 - British Rothera and Beyond by AerosoftGmbH. Antarctica is the earth's southernmost continent and home to thefamous South Pole. It is a vast area covering more than 5 millionsquare miles or 14,000 square kilometres, with over 98% of the landmass being covered by ice. However, if you are looking for somewhereto just get away from it all, this may be the place for you, as thepopulation only gets up to about 5,000 in the summermonths. Considering the continent is twice the size of Australia, itgives you plenty of space to spread out and take in the stunningscenery. But do not be fooled by the remoteness and the lack ofvegetation or people, as this part of the world has some of the moststunning scenery imaginable, and I can safely say that after spendingseveral hours here, I have totally fallen in love with the place. The scenery being reviewed comes from the folks over at AerosoftGmbH, and it focuses on three specific field locations run by theBritish Antarctic Survey, namely Rothera Base, Fossil Bluff Skiway andthe very remote Sky Blu with its blue ice runway. The two laterlocations function as fuel stops for the Twin Otters and Dash 7 thatfrequent the area in the summer months, when they regularly ferrypassengers and freight from Stanley in the Falklands, some 1,800kilometres or 1,150 miles away. /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-04.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-01.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-06.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-07.jpgThe base at Rothera fulfills its role as the primary researchstation for the area, as well as the capital of the British AntarcticTerritory, a British Overseas Territory. It is situated at RotheraPoint on Adelaide Island to the west of the Antarctic Peninsula, wherethere has been a settlement since the 1960's, with the currentfacility being established in the mid 1970's. It really is a stunning part of the world with its high mountainpeaks, expansive glaciers, beautiful crystal-clear waters and vastopen spaces, not to mention the vibrant and diverse wildlifepopulations, so if you would like to know more about what is on offer,then please read on. Purchase, Download, Documentation And InstallationI obtained my copy at the FlightSim.Com Store, where it retails ata very reasonable $14.99. As it is published by Aerosoft, you willneed to sign up to their Aerosoft One platform to download and installthe scenery. I found it a little bit fiddly at first, but like allthings, once you learn how, it is not that difficult. The installerdoes everything for you, and you will be set up in no time with anadditional 290 MB of scenery on your hard drive. Within Aerosoft One,you can access the manual that comes with the scenery, get thetechnical overview of the scenery from the developer, as well asaccess their support network. From here you can also uninstall thescenery if you wish. /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-08.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-09.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-10.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-11.jpgAs I mentioned, the scenery comes with a nicely laid out 39-pagemanual, which in addition to providing all the information you needregarding the scenery features, it also references real lifeexperiences of pilots who regularly fly in this region. There areseveral pages dedicated to this, and these cover things like theadditional skills required to fly in this region, weather challenges,radio and communication protocols, ferry flights and further readingif interested. This is a nice touch and really allows you to immerseyour self in the experience. The manual is also peppered with numerousphotographs of some of the best features, as well as a couple ofairfield charts for basic reference purposes. An explanation of theflight plans that are included with the scenery is also provided. One of the most useful features of the manual in my opinion, is theFAQ section, and I highly recommend that anyone buying the sceneryreads this carefully, as it explains a few things that you really needto be aware of, both in terms of some known limitations within MSFSitself, but also because of the location of Antarctica and how thateffects day light, ice formation, etc. /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-12.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-13.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-14.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-15.jpgSystem PerformanceMy review was using the Premium Deluxe version of MSFS, and as I donot own a Twin Otter or Dash 7 as described in the manual, I used thefabulous Airbus H135 helicopter from Hype Performance Group during myreview. Helicopters give you more freedom and the best opportunity toreally explore all the nooks and crannies that you just can't in afixed wing aircraft, and I really wanted to experience as much as Icould. My current simulator consists of an Intel i9 9900K 3.6 GHz CPU,GTX2080Ti 11 GB GPU and 64 GB of DDR4 Kingston RAM at its core. Mysystem settings are at ULTRA, and I had no issues at all, with smoothflying throughout the numerous flights I took. Frame rates for me werein the mid-40s to mid-50s, and although there was the occasional microstutter, my flying experience was extremely enjoyable. I experimentedwith various weather patterns, from clear skies through to snowstormsand white outs, and I had no performance issues at all which was verypleasing. I should mention that I also have SoFly's Weather Pre-set Proinstalled and used it extensively through the tests, as I really enjoythe additional effects it brings at the click of a button. /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-16.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-17.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-18.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-19.jpgI should also mention that I have several Saitek panels hooked up,along with my MaxFlightStick cyclic and collective, as well as a setof VKB pedals. I use Axis and Ohs to connect the panels to MSFS, andthey all work well. For head tracking I use the SmoothTrack app on myiPhone, and again it works well, giving an all-round viewingexperience. No need for headsets or other gadgets, and this reallyadds to the immersion when flying over scenery such as this. Look And FeelWell, what can I really say other than stunning, stunningstunning! The combination of MSFS and the Rothera scenery providedby Aerosoft are a fantastic example of what this sim is all about. Youcannot help but be impressed at what you first encounter as you spawninto Rothera Base. The scenery is just breath-taking, from the icycold waters, the hundreds of animated icebergs (watch out for the bigone at the end of the runway ...), the majestic mountains, through tothe beautifully crafted buildings and airfield features, and did Imention penguins? The details here are just fabulous, and one of thefeatures I really enjoyed was how the look of the airfield changes sodramatically based on the weather. Using clear skies, the runways havethat dirty gravelly look when the snow melts, however this is totallytransformed to a beautiful winter wonderland when you select one ofthe snow-based weather pre-sets such as my favorite, Arctic Chill. Ishould say though, pick Blizzard and this really makes lifeinteresting, particularly for the poor old penguins. /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-20.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-21.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-22.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-23.jpgRothera base is wonderfully modelled and appears to be an accuraterepresentation of the real thing based on photos I found. Thebuildings and fixed structures are expertly modelled and textured, andthe area is feature rich. This is where having the H135 really comesinto its own, as you can really explore the area in detail. Inaddition to the static models, there are so many animated features,that I did not know where to first look. This really hits the spot forme, and I was not disappointed in any way shape or form. Starting withthe human side of things, there are a good smattering of people acrossthe base, from the couple up on the bench chatting and looking out tosea, to the guy throwing snowballs (cool), to the control toweroperator, the guy readying the Twin Otter for a flight and the chaptidying the shelves in the hangar. This then gets even better with thenumerous animated vehicles to be found including boats and ships,skidoos, and snow vehicles with tracks (yes animated tracks), to theexcavator doing some upgrades. And if that was not enough, well then,you have the King Penguins... there are a few groups for you toenjoy, two larger groups just basking in the summer sun, and a groupof three off for a walk. Not only are they beautifully animated butthe sound effects are just fabulous. I am sure Sir David Attenboroughwould be proud. /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-24.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-25.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-26.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-27.jpgI have been a flight sim fan for nearly ten years now, and I canhonestly say I have never experienced anything quite like what I wasseeing here at Rothera. With all the focus on our planet now, it is agenuine privilege to be able to explore this part of our living worldall be it virtually. The work the Aerosoft team have put in, reallybring it to life, and their diligence is exceptional. The only thingthat was a slight disappointment was the fact that I was never able tofind the group of Orcas that are reported as being in the nearbywaters, but I have not given up yet. They are just as elusive as theyare in real life when humans are around. There did also appear to be aslight glitch in the animations from time to time, however I do notknow if that was a MSFS thing or related to the scenery, but eitherway it was not too much of a distraction. /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-28.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-29.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-30.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-31.jpgRothera is a wonderful place to start your Antarctic adventure, andwhen you are done there, you can pop over to the other two sites thatare presented, namely Fossil Bluff Skiway and Sky Blu. Although not asdetailed as Rothera, there are a few features to see, including theblue ice runway at Sky Blu, and the ice version of Stonehenge,Icehenge I can only assume. Not sure if that is a real feature or justthe developers having some fun [Editor's note:it's real],however either way it made me smile when I saw it. During most of myflights, I used the Arctic Chill weather setting from the WeatherPre-set Pro I have installed, as this really gave the feel of a cold,crisp and fresh Antarctic day. I found that using real weather meantthat the water surfaces were frozen over, which, although it stilllooked OK, did make it a little strange seeing ships and boats sailingon the ice. It is just up to personal preference and how you set theweather and time of year. Personally, I enjoyed December and themidnight sun local time, as the sun rays on the water and surroundingswere just stunning. Being from the Northern Hemisphere and being usedto cold weather and snow from time to time, I really did lose myselfon a few occasions and could easily imagine stepping out from one ofthe accommodation modules, and drawing a crisp sharp breath of cleanair... just fabulous! Final ThoughtsI was generally impressed by the combination of the Rothera andBeyond scenery and what MSFS can do, as together the effects are juststunning. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in this small corner ofAntarctica, and I believe that the Aerosoft team really have done afabulous job of bringing what appears to be a barren and emptywasteland to life. I will be honest enough to say that before I loadedup the scenery, I thought I was going to get bored quickly, however Ican safely say the opposite was more like the truth. There is just somuch to see, and even just taking in the breath-taking mountains,glaciers and oceans is enough to keep me coming back for more. Oh,that and the fact that I still have not been able to locate the Orcas,will keep me searching for a long while yet. /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-32.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-33.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-34.jpg /images/reviews/rothera/t/antarctica-british-rothera-35.jpgSo, should you buy it? In my opinion, if you are looking for something just that littlebit different from the more typical cities and large concrete jungleswe humans have created for ourselves, and you are looking to unplugyour brain for a few hours, contemplate life, and just fly simple VFR,enjoying some stunning scenery, Antarctica Volume 1 - British Rotheraand Beyond may very well be for you. It really is a beautiful andpristine part of the world, and I can see now why we all need to doour part to keep it that way. I genuinely cannot wait for volumes, 2,3and 4... Video View /images/reviews/rothera/title3.jpgStuart McGregor Purchase Aerosoft - Antarctica Vol. 1 - British Rothera and Beyond Aerosoft - Twin Otter for MSFS - an ideal plane for Antarctic flying See other Aerosoft scenery for MSFS 2020

/images/notams/notams21/lime0927/lime0927.jpgRothera is without a doubt the station in Antarctica with the mostpicturesque location! Located on a rocky outcrop overlooked by amassive glacier dotted with mountains to the west - it is surroundedby sea to all other directions with a line of the truly majesticmountains of the Antarctic Peninsula visible to the east on cleardays. /images/notams/notams21/lime0927/rothera-1.jpgThe runway is squeezed between base and hangar buildings to theleft and right and sea water at both ends. In essence it's a smallerversion of Gibraltar, which is British, too. A stunning approach, arunway that's crossed by a road with traffic lights and surrounded bywater. To complete this add-on, we have added the very remote bases ofFossil Bluff and Sky Blu even further south. Together they make aperfect playground for the Aerosoft Aircraft Twin Otter! A showcase scenery created by developers with more than 20 years ofexperience in MSFS development! /images/notams/notams21/lime0927/rothera-2.jpgFeaturesLots of animation including animals, vehicle, boats and people, including likely the first animated penguins and chain vehicles in flight simulatorCustom created sounds of animals and vehicles (probably the first scenery in MSFS with sounds attached)Coverage beyond the base with stunning glacier cliffs dropping into the seaHundreds of thousands of animated icebergs in a larger area around the base (at times it can be possible that the approach is blocked by a huge iceberg passing through)Offsite locations of automated monitoring stations (marked as POIs so you can fly there for regular checks performing rough landings out in the field)Offsite landing strips of two British field locations with custom models and improved terrain imagery/elevation data: Sky Blu and Fossil BluffEmergency airstrip location on the glacier above Rothera (alternative landing strip that MUST be used by local aircraft if there are incoming overseas aircraft)Carefully crafted landscape to merge with surround landscapeincluding updated waterbodiesSpecial technique used to add wind shear details to the vast white lands on the glacier.Manual with dozens of pages of inside knowledge on flying in Antarctica, plus flight plans and simple charts! /images/notams/notams21/lime0927/rothera-3.jpg /images/notams/notams21/lime0927/rothera-4.jpgPurchase Aerosoft - Antarctica Vol. 1 - British Rothera and Beyond for MSFS

Rot /images/notams/notams21/aero0921.jpgAerosoft - Antarctica Vol. 1 - British Rothera and Beyondfor MSFS 2020 Official Trailer: Rothera is without a doubt the station in Antarctica with the mostpicturesque location! Located on a rocky outcrop overlooked by amassive glacier dotted with mountains to the west - it is surroundedby sea to all other directions with a line of the truly majesticmountains of the Antarctic Peninsula visible to the east on cleardays. The runway is squeezed between base and hangar buildings to theleft and right and sea water at both ends. In essence it's a smallerversion of Gibraltar, which is British, too. A stunning approach, arunway that's crossed by a road with traffic lights and surrounded bywater.To complete this add-on, we have added the very remote bases ofFossil Bluff and Sky Blu even further south. Together they make aperfect playground for the Aerosoft Aircraft Twin Otter! A showcase scenery created by developers with more than 20 years ofexperience in MSFS development!

/images/notams/notams20/hsim1211/hsim1211.jpgToday we announce the addition of a new X-Plane scenery developer tothe FlightSim.Com Store. HSimulators likes to create scenery for thetruly extreme regions of the world, including the Arctic, Antarctica andthe Amazon. Their scenery packages lets you visit parts of the world thatare otherwise unavailable to X-Plane pilots. Antarctica Mega SceneryThe scenery covers the area of S60 to S90 degrees and W180 to E180degrees. There are 51 research stations of different nationalities,with airstrips and heliport. Of the 51 locations, 35 are 3D sceneryand 16 2D scenery. Mesh terrain of Antarctica’s total area, completelycovered by the ice cap, developed with the generation of DSFbuilder,HSimulators’ mesh terrain management and creation program. /images/notams/notams20/hsim1211/grand-arctic.jpgGrand ArcticIt is well-known that X-Plane’s Global Scenery only covers up tothe North 73rd parallel. This scenery completes the Arctic region withmore than one million square miles, approximately 1800x835 miles ofscenery. In includes all mesh for Canada and Greenland in the regionalong with 23 airports. /images/notams/notams20/hsim1211/russia-xtreme.jpgRussia Xtreme ArcticThis scenery completes the Arctic region north of Russia, from 44 eastto 152 east and 72 north to 82 north. In addition to the Russian Arcticmesh, Nagurskoye airport, located on Alexandra Island, is included. Thisis the closest Russian airport to the North Pole. /images/notams/notams20/hsim1211/grand-amazonia.jpgGrand AmazoniaThe Grand Amazonia Scenery comprises a vast region of the extremenorth of Brazil, on the border with Venezuela, a region of the RioUraricoera basins. The region is full of very isolated indigenousvillages and gold mines, where the only access is by airplane orsometimes by river. A region of great conflict where the Brazilian AirForce is very active, both in patrolling and in assisting thepeople. In this first part you have ten airports and aerodromes. View all HSimulators scenery