Que Sera Sera R4D-5L Douglas

This story is long. There are seven main characters in it. There are three aircraft involved and many, many more that make this flight possible.
John P. Strider, AD2, crew chief; RADM George J. Dufek. C.O. Task Force 43; LCDR Conrad (Gus) Shinn, pilot; Lieutenant John R. Swadener, navigator; William A. Cumbie, Jr., AT2, radioman; Captain William Hawkes, copilot; and Captain Douglas Cordinor, observer; an all-Navy team for the occasion.

"Que Sera Sera" (What will be will be) made History by becoming the first aircraft to land on the South Pole on October 31st 1956. The photo was taken by the C-124 Globemaster flying above it.

31 December 1956 , TIME Magazine:

"DUFEK'S PARTY AT THE POLE
From eleven bottles, a wrench and a stagger.."

When the Que Sera Sera landed at the Pole, the engines were left running to protect them from the freezing temperatures. They took some scientific measurements to determine the possibility of establishing a permanent air station in the area.

With the temperature at minus 60 degrees and at an elevation of 10,000 feet (limiting the amount of lift the wings could generate at 28,000 pounds), the plane was already testing its limits. The landing skis had become stuck in the ice so they outfitted the aircraft with four Jet-Assisted Taff-Off (JATO) pods. The pods were ignited on takeoff to provide extra thrust. After almost 10 attempts there was some slight movement.

For every milestone like this there are people behind the scenes who play a large part, too. Pilots Eddie Frankiewicz and Jim Waldron were the rescue crew who waited in the wings that day, and they too relied upon the same model.

They landed their R4D "Charlene" on the Liv Glacier as Shinn and Dufek flew overhead. "Charlene's" engines were kept running for the better part of a day, to be ready at a moment's notice in case the historic flight to Pole needed help.

Billianne - Que Sera Sera Youtube Video

The Que Sera Sera was given to the Smithsonian Institution and was restored in 1966. It is on display at the National Naval Aviation History Museum in Pensacola, Fla.