A Canadian aircraft landed in Antarctica Saturday afternoon on its way to attempt the rescue of a worker at a U.S. research station at the South Pole.

Sean Loutitt, a pilot with Kenn Borek Air of Calgary, co-pilot Brian Crocker and engineer Kevin Riehl will take off on a 10-hour flight Sunday from a British Antarctic base to try and reach the Pole and pick up a worker who needs surgery.

The worker at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station is very ill, said Steve Penikett, general manager of Kenn Borek Air.

Loutitt will try and land in the few hours of twilight around noon Sunday. It's the end of the winter in Antarctica, and the weather is expected to be windy, erratic and cold about -50C.

But that's warmer than it was during Loutitt's historic first mercy flight to the South Pole on April 26, 2001.

On that occasion, when he picked up a doctor who needed surgery, it was -60 C, or closer to -100 C with the wind chill.

Kenn Borek Air is large charter company that, among other things, flies support missions for United Nations peacekeeepers and carries scientists and adventurers to both poles.