Posted by on Apr 14, 2014

Right now we are sitting in the C17 awaiting departure. This morning we took the hotel shuttle to the air base but the shuttle could not enter so we had to throw all our gear into the back of a big military police pickup and cram all 6 of us into the cab with the driver. Then we hung around an auditorium for about two hours while the crew “palletized” our luggage. They strap them to pallets and pack the plane as you see behind us. Finally, about 9:45, we took a bus out to the plane and loaded up. The seats are a little uncomfortable but not bad. Certainly more spacious than a commercial plane. The commander gave me a tour of the cockpit and explained that the C17 is one of the few aircraft this size with a stick (like in a helicopter) for control rather than a yoke. I was not allowed to blog the photo of the cockpit!

Me are on board with 12 folks froM Polar Field Services, the outfit that runs most of the science logistics for research projects in Greenland. The gear you see in the back is equipment for research teams for around the country that will be coming Greenland in the months to come. This is really a cargo flight and we are basically part of that cargo. pilot flight crew is currently running through the aircraft systems in their preflight check so looks like it is time to go soon. Next blog post will be from Kangerlussuaq!
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