MOSCOW, March 31 (RIA Novosti) - A drifting Russian ice base, that would become the hotspot of tourist and research activities in the Arctic next month, started clearing up an ice runway for its future guests on Monday.
"Today, an Il-76 military transport plane airdropped two bulldozers and five metric tons of fuel for them. They have already started laying an ice runway for Antonov An-72 transport planes," Russian Air Force spokesman Col. Igor Klimov said.
Food, fuel, polar tents and other necessary supplies were delivered to the location by planes earlier this month.
The Barneo Research Station is set up annually since 2002 by the Russian Geographical Society on an ice floe at a latitude of some 89 degrees north, approximately 110 kilometers (68.4 miles) from the North Pole.
Normally, it opens in early April and operates for about a month. Its guests can travel to the North Pole on skis, by dog sled, or by helicopter.
As the tent camp and the runway are located on a constantly moving ice floe, the base has to be built from scratch every year.
