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What airport has a runway made of ice?

Blue ice runways in Antarctica include: Pegasus Field, Ross Dependency, serving McMurdo Station, and operated by the United States Antarctic Program (closed since 2016) Troll Airfield, Queen Maud Land, serving Troll Station, and operated by the Norwegian Polar Institute.



The most famous airport with a runway made entirely of ice is the Ice Runway (NZIR) in Antarctica, serving McMurdo Station. In 2026, it remains a seasonal high-fidelity marvel constructed on frozen sea ice at the start of the Antarctic summer. While it can handle massive wheeled aircraft like the C-17 Globemaster, it must be decommissioned each year when the ice becomes unstable due to the "High-Fidelity" warming of the summer sun. Other notable Antarctic ice landing strips include Wilkins Runway (a "blue ice" runway on a glacier) and Wolf’s Fang Runway. These high-fidelity runways require constant monitoring of ice thickness and temperature to ensure they can withstand the immense weight of modern transport planes without cracking, providing a critical lifeline for researchers and high-fidelity expedition travelers at the bottom of the world.

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Most airports aim to clear frozen deposits completely but where this is impractical because of low temperature and persistent snow conditions, treatment of a frozen surface to achieve adequate braking action may be undertaken.

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Phoenix Runway, which was completed in 2016 to replace an older facility, is made of snow so tightly packed that it can withstand the landings of heavy-wheeled aircraft like the USAF Boeing C-17 Globemaster III. Williams Field, another snowy runway near McMurdo, offers a place for ski-equipped aircraft to land.

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Also the runway has to be extremely strong, because aircraft have much higher weight on each tire than cars. A heating system with adequate durability would therefore be really expensive.

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In 1911, a Norwegian team led by explorer Roald Amundsen first reached the South Pole. Since then, there have been thousands of expeditions across the continent, for adventure as well as science. However, due to the challenging terrain and extreme temperatures, many areas of Antarctica have not yet been fully explored.

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Planes can and do sometimes fly over Antarctica, it is not a no-fly zone and it is not illegal, it is just very impractical to do so.

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