Retired astronaut Buzz Aldrin aboard rescue flight from South Pole

Buzz Aldrin‚ the second man to walk on the moon‚ is aboard a medical evacuation flight from the South Pole where he flew to as a tourist this week from Cape Town.

White Desert luxury tour operators has confirmed that the retired US astronaut was evacuated in a stable condition after his health had “deteriorated”.

TMG Digital reported earlier on Thursday that the National Science Foundation (NSF)‚ which manages the US Antarctic Program‚ had confirmed being asked to arrange the rescue by a company based in Cape Town specialising in tourist visits to the frozen continent.

Aldrin‚ who is 86‚ arrived in Cape Town last weekend to prepare for his trip aboard a Russian aircraft with his manager Christina Korp who tweeted a photograph of them just before take-off on Tuesday.

We're really going!! Feels like a dream but South Pole here we come! #Antarcticapic.twitter.com/GGC8dWhyGt

— Christina Korp (@Buzzs_xtina) November 29, 2016

“Buzz Aldrin‚ has been evacuated from (the) South Pole. Mr Aldrin was visiting the Pole as part of a tourist group and while there his condition deteriorated‚” said White Desert in a statement on Thursday afternoon.

“As a precaution‚ following discussion between the White Desert doctor and the US Antarctic Program doctor‚ Mr Aldrin‚ accompanied by a member of his team‚ was evacuated on the first available flight out of the South Pole to McMurdo … under the care of a … doctor. His condition was described as stable upon White Desert doctor's hand-over to the USAP medial team.”

The flight is reportedly still in progress. He will be flown to New Zealand.