Russia’s nuclear-powered icebreaker "50 Years of Victory" on July 30, 2013 at 11:49 pm (Moscow Time) reached the point of the North Pole, the owner Atomflot said in a press release.
This is the 20th voyage of the icebreaker to the North Pole, which also marks the 100th visit of a surface ship to the top of the planet in the entire history of shipping in the Arctic.
For the first time, the North Pole point was reached on August 17, 1977 by the nuclear-powered icebreaker "Arktika", led by Captain Yuri Kuchiev.
Of the hundred voyages to the North Pole, there were 15 visits by foreign-flagged vessels. The Sweden diesel icebreaker "Oden" made seven trips to the North Pole and once the Vidar Viking. The U.S. and Germany flagged icebreakers visited the place three times and once - a Canadian icebreaker.
There were also everal voyages of Russian diesel-powered icebreakers: on July 21 1994 by the Kapitan Dranitsin and three times - in 2005, 2007 and 2010, by a RV Akademik Fedorov.
The nuclear icebreaker Yamal outscoured others: the vessel had visited the geographic top of the planet 46 times.