The Ice Runway (ICAO: NZIR) is the principal runway for the U.S. Antarctic Program during the summer Antarctic field season due to its proximity to McMurdo Station. The other two runways in the area are the snow runway at Williams Field (NZWD) and the compacted snow runway at Phoenix Airfield (NZFX), which replaced Pegasus Field (NZPG) in 2017.
The annual sea-ice runway for wheeled aircraft is constructed at the start of each season and is used until early December when the sea ice begins to break up.[4] Subsequently flight operations are moved back to Williams Field. Pilots landing C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft on the sea ice runway report that the surface is stable, not unlike landing on concrete. The similarity with land bases ends when the jet aircraft rolls to a stop, however. The nearly 450,000 pound (= 201 tons) weight of the plane, including cargo and passengers, causes it to sink into the ice, albeit only a matter of inches. A laser light is trained on the aircraft to measure the settlement rate. The $200 million aircraft is moved to a new location on the six-foot-thick ice as a safety measure if the 10-inch red line is reached, according to the News Tribune in Tacoma, Washington.[citation needed]
Accidents and incidents
18 October 1956: a Lockheed P2V-2N Neptune (122465) of the US Navy crashed on landing, killing 4 of the 8 occupants. The Neptune was arriving from Christchurch without enough fuel to turn back and weather at McMurdo was storming; the plane suddenly turned right and the nose fell during landing, and the Neptune was demolished on impact.[5]
31 October 1960: a United States Navy Lockheed EC-121 Warning Star from Oceanographic Development Squadron Eight crashed while attempting to land on the Ice Runway. The pilot and co-pilot were badly injured, but the other crew received minor injuries or were uninjured. The aircraft was not recovered, and was simply allowed to sink when the ice melted in the spring.[6][7]