- The Italia expedition -

A short flight east

Summary

airship Italia heading east from Kings Bay

Airship Italia heading east from Kings Bay

Although the North Pole was Nobile’s main goal, he and his team were also keen to make a foray eastward from Spitsbergen across what was, at the time, still largely uncharted territory. On 11 May, the Italia took off from Kings Bay, heading east towards Nordaustlandet and Franz-Josef Land. But just three hours out from Kings Bay, the airship ran into bad weather, and Nobile decided to play safe and return to Kings Bay.

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