D
evelopment
of the new
cross-polar
routes began
in 1994 when
the Russian
government
initiated work with
the airlines and
the international
community
to establish a
series of polar
routes through
its airspace. By
mid-1998, the four
cross-polar routes
were defined and
made available
for demonstration
flights. The first
official polar
route flight by a
commercial airline
was conducted
in July 1998. U.S.
and Asian airlines
then conducted
more than 650
demonstration
flights under
special
arrangements
with Russian
authorities. Today,
hundreds of flights
operate each week
over the interior
of Russia between
Europe and Asia.
Similarly, a large
volume of traffic
crosses the
Atlantic north of
Iceland and the
Arctic Circle on
flights between
Europe and the
West Coast of
North America.
The FAA requires
operators to
obtain specific
approval to
conduct polar
operations. The
U.S. Federal
Aviation
POLAR OPERATIONS
Administration
(FAA) requires
airlines to
obtain specific
approval to
conduct polar
operations.
This approval
process is very
extensive and
requires the
airlines to meet
all of these
requirements
before
attempting to
fly Polar routes.
The FAA defines
the North
Polar area of
operations as
the area lying
north of the
78-degree north
latitude.
A
ll airlines
must
define an
alternate airport
that they may
land at if the
weather at the
destination
airport. This
alternate airport
By BOEING
UAA0010 Rama Lahori
must be able
to handle your
aircraft size
meaning you
can land safely
and take-off
safely at the
airport. Boeing
conducted
airport safety
and operational
assessments
(ASOA) of 16
airports in Siberia
and the Russian
Far East from July
1998 to February
2001 with the
Russian State
Civil Aviation
Authority, FAA,
and airlines. The
North Pacific and
Russian Far East
tracks Cold Bay,
King Salmon,
and Shemya
Island/Eareckson
Air Station.
Although the
capabilities of the
airports varied,
all were shown
to be capable
of supporting
emergency
diversions, and
the majority
were deemed
adequate for use
as alternates in
extended-range
twin-engine
operations.
assessments
examined the
conditions of
each airport and
its capability to
support flight
diversions. In
addition to onsite
visits to facilities
in the Russian
Federation, three
facilities in Alaska
were assessed
in support of
The ASOAs
also identified
how the airport
infrastructures
compared with
the international
standards of
the International
Civil Aviation
Organization
(ICAO).
4| FlyUAA| www.FlyUAA.org| September Issue
A
irlines
must have
effective
communication
capability. Must
communicate
with VATSIM (if
you are flying
on VATSIM
network.) If the
airspace is not
controlled by, a
live controller
must use 122.8
Unicom by
texting your
intentions. The
departure and
initial cruise
portions of a
polar
flight are
routine
operations.
However, as the
airplane nears
the southern
portion of
the Canadian
Northern
Control Area
(NCA), it
approaches the