#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. The famous traveler Fedor Konyukhov in July 2024 wants to fly 900 kilometers on a two-seater paralet – an ultralight aircraft, and land at the North Pole for the first time. If the idea succeeds, the extreme sportsman will set two new world records at once. This was reported on Konyukhov’s website. Pilot Igor Potapkin will also go on the expedition with the traveler.
The starting point will be Franz Josef Land, the flight is planned to last 12–13 hours, the device’s speed will be 60 kilometers per hour. After landing, extreme sports enthusiasts will wait for the nuclear-powered ship – for some time they will have to live under the paraplan’s wing. The motor paraglider itself is a special two-seater trolley weighing 150 kg (without fairing) with a four-stroke engine, a variable pitch propeller and a wing with an area of 42 m2.
The St. Petersburg Polytechnic University’s advanced engineering school has developed a fairing that ensures the crew’s safety, as well as additional storage space for rescue equipment and other payload. Two fuel tanks made of composites, 75 liters each, are built into the fairing.
After landing at the North Pole, Konyukhov will deploy a drifting station in the Arctic Ocean, where he will live for three weeks, carrying out the scientific program of the Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The traveler will explore the bottom seismic activity, as well as ice drift routes. In addition, the extreme sports enthusiast will study the topic of microplastics in the ocean.
Previously, Fyodor Konyukhov made a flight in support of the Clean Arctic project, and also spent ten days at a drifting station, where he studied the ice movement and painted pictures.
Follow us on Telegram, VKontakte.
Text: Angelika Stepanova, Photo: Severny Gorod MC archive
