North Pole 1949 two other Soviet scientists (Vitali Volovich and Andrei Medvedev) became the first people to parachute onto the North Pole. They jumped from a Douglas C-47 Skytrain, registered CCCP H-369. On 3 May 1952 U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Joseph O. Fletcher and Lieutenant William Pershing Benedict, along with scientist Albert P. Crary, landed a modified Douglas C-47 Skytrain at the North Pole. Some Western sources considered this to be the first landing at the Pole until the Soviet landings became widely known. The United States Navy submarine "USS Nautilus" (SSN-571) crossed the North Pole on 3 August 1958. On
French submarine Espadon (S637) front of her sail. On 13 August 1963 a fire in the torpedo room wounded and intoxicated four sailors, one of whom later died of his wounds. In May 1964, "Espadon" and "Marsouin" steamed under sea ice in the Norwegian Sea as far as 70° north. "Espadon" undertook significant modifications from 1966 to 1968, notably upgrading the boat's sonar, sail and rudders. "Espadon" has been a museum ship at the "ville-port" of Saint-Nazaire in the German-built submarine base since 1987. French submarine Espadon (S637) Espadon was a "Narval"-class submarine of the French Navy. Along with sister boat "Marsouin", the boat