Haunting story of the only Antarctic plane crash with survivors who kept themselves alive for 13 days until rescue

There is a haunting true story about the only ever Antarctic plane crash with survivors, who had to keep themselves alive for nearly two weeks while they waited to be rescued.

The terrifying incident occurred back in 1946 when a twin-engine American patrol bomber flying boat crashed during a heavy blizzard.

The group had been part of a secret mission to claim Antarctica for the US.

The survivors had to wait 13 days to be rescued (Ashley Cooper/Getty Images)

The incident killed two people onboard instantly, with a third person dying two hours later.

However, six other passengers survived the crash and they had a huge problem on their hands - staying alive long enough to be rescued.

The tunnel section of the plane had been ripped from the rest of it and so the survivors took up shelter there.

Finding a parachute, they attached it to the end of the tunnel to avoid snow or wind from getting into the plane.

Luckily, the group also found some essentials onboard including tents, sleeping bags and some food, which was mostly canned soup and meat.

It took 13 days for the group to finally be rescued by an aircraft from Pine Island.

One passenger had suffered such severe frostbite from the icy conditions that both of his legs had to be amputated.

Later, one of his arms was surgically grafted to his face to repair facial tissue that had also been damaged by frostbite.

The plane crashed during a secret mission to claim Antarctica for the US (Museum of Flight/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)

Those who had died in the crash were buried at the site, which is where they remain today.

There have been attempts to return to the area to recover the bodies and bring them home but it has not been successful as of yet.

In 2004, a Chilean navy plane flew over the site as part of a surveying flight to get the exact location.

Afterwards, a two-part recovery mission was planned and due to take place in November 2008 and November 2009 but both were ultimately cancelled.

In 2012, it was hoped that another group would be able to drill down 100 feet to retrieve the bodies and return them to the US.

However, this also ended up being cancelled due to a lack of funds after they struggled to raise the $1.5 to $3.5 million they would have needed to pull off the mission.

For now, their remains rest in Antarctica and in 1959, the Antarctic Treaty was signed, meaning no nation could stake claim and the region would remain politically neutral.