II\. Expedition Dates

Section II of the 1998-99 season plans includes information concerning
vessel and aircraft operations along with estimated dates of expeditions
and other significant events.

# Winfly Activities

Annual augmentation of the U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP) begins with
austral winter flights (WINFLY), departing Christchurch, New Zealand,
and arriving McMurdo Station, Antarctica, about 20 August 1998. The
aircraft will carry scientists and support personnel to start early
pre-summer projects, to augment maintenance personnel, and to prepare
skiways and ice runways at McMurdo Station. This will involve 5 U.S. Air
Force C-141B flights and will increase station population from the
winter-over level of about 154 to a transition level of about 373.

# Mainbody Activities

Austral summer activities will be initiated in late September 1998 with
wheeled aircraft operations between Christchurch, New Zealand and the
sea-ice runways at McMurdo Station, Antarctica. This will involve
approximately 17 C-141B flights and 3 C-5 flights of transport aircraft
of the U.S. Air Force Air Mobility Command (AMC), and 13 flights by
C-130 aircraft of the Royal New Zealand Air Force transport aircraft.
The sea-ice runway and wheeled aircraft operations will cease about
early December 1998 and then continue about mid January to seasons end.
During the in between period, aircraft operations will be conducted by
USAP LC-130 aircraft (the Navy VXE-6 Squadron and the ANG 109th AW) from
a prepared skiway.

The 109th Tactical Air Group of the Air National Guard in Schenectady,
New York will provide four LC-130 aircraft and three crews for
intra-continental flights from late October 1998 through McMurdo station
closing.

# Significant Dates

Other significant dates for the summer season include:

1.  29 September 1998 - McMurdo Station \"Mainbody\" begins

2.  14 September 1998 - Palmer Station opens

3.  03 October 1998 - Marble Point opens

4.  26 October 1998 - South Pole Station Opens

5.  27 October 1998 - Siple Dome Camp Opens

6.  28 October 1998 - Downstream Bravo Camp Opens

7.  16 November 1998 - Upstream Delta Camp opens

8.  01 December 1998 - Ford Range Camp Opens

# Ship Movements 

## M/V GREEN WAVE

The cargo ship, M/V GREEN WAVE, is scheduled to complete one trip to
McMurdo this season. The ship will depart Port Hueneme, California, in
early January 1999 after onloading cargo and transit directly to Port
Lyttelton, New Zealand. The Green Wave will again onload additional
cargo and depart New Zealand for McMurdo. Cargo will be off-loaded
between 02-10 February, after which the ship will depart McMurdo and
proceed to Lyttelton, New Zealand to offload additional cargo. It will
depart on

approximately 17 February for Washington State to off-load waste and
recyclable materials from McMurdo Station. From there it will transit to
Port Hueneme, California, arriving there on 15 March 1999.

## R/V NATHANIEL B. PALMER

The R/V NATHANIEL B. PALMER will conduct 9 scientific research cruises,
totaling an estimated 292 days at sea, during the 1998-99 season. The
vessel will provide support throughout the season for biological,
chemical, physical oceanographic, and marine geophysics investigations
in the Weddell, Bellingshausen, and the Ross Seas. Ports of call include
Punta Arenas, CHILE, Lyttelton, NEW ZEALAND, and McMurdo Station,
Antarctica.

## R/V LAURENCE M. GOULD

The R/V LAURENCE M. GOULD will conduct 10 scientific research cruises,
totaling an estimated 315 days at sea, during the 1998-99 season. The
research supported will include at sea research, station work at
Elephant, King George, Livingston, Deception, Low, Smith, and Greenwich
Islands, and station support at Palmer Station.