Legendary Åkerman Completes Operation Lemmenjoki

Back in March, we brought you the story of Operation Lemmenjoki, where a team of guys headed by Finnish rally driver Henri Haapamäki were attempting to move an old Åkerman H16B from the frozen wilds of Northern Lapland, some 40km under its own power, to an area where it could be picked up by road going transport, and I’m delighted to bring you an update.

The team had faced an enormous task, not least to start with, they had to change the worn-out tracks on the machine. That was done courtesy of a donation by one of the sponsors of the challenge, track and ground engaging tool suppliers ITR Finland who provided a completely new set of tracks which made the task much easier, eliminating the fear of losing a track in deep snow and all the added complications that would cause.

One of the team members, Ville, actually sat on the back of the machine while conducting navigating duties along the route, he was also able to keep warm from the heat of the engine and hydraulics, communication with the operator of the machine, Henri’s dad, was done in the Nordic way via a headphone and mic set up.

There were many other sponsors who made this mission possible and in the traditional manner they were mentioned on a couple of sponsors boards that were mounted on the machine for the epic journey.

For its age the machine is as you can see in the photos, in incredible condition, and Henri reports that there were no mechanical problems encountered during the journey, as the venerable old girl just kept tracking on with a beautiful roar coming from the six pot, 247hp Volvo Penta TD 100 A diesel engine.

Congratulations must go to the whole team, who battled the elements in the frozen North of Lapland to bring the mission to its successful conclusion, and to all the sponsors who helped to make it happen.

Having completed the mission, the machine is now up for grabs in an online auction and at the time of writing 21000 Euros is the current top bid.

There is an entire series of videos on You Tube documenting this journey, and below is the final episode for your enjoyment.

Thanks must also go to my good friend Olli Päiviö of Koneporssi Magazine for highlighting this story to me.