1955–58 Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition, Antarctic Plateau, Antarctica

Fuchs was knighted for his accomplishment. The second crossing of the continent did not happen until 1981, during the Transglobe Expedition led by Ranulph Fiennes.
Preparations
Preparations began in London in 1955. Over the southern summer of 1955–56 Fuchs sailed with an advance party from London to Antarctica in the Canadian sealer Theron, with the purpose of establishing Shackleton Base near Vahsel Bay on the Weddell Sea, from which the trans-Antarctic expedition would begin. The Theron, like its immediate forbears, the Endurance (1914 Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition) and the Deutschland (Filchner's German Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1911), was trapped in the ice. Despite sustaining considerable damage, she was able to free herself with the help of the Auster Antarctic floatplane that scouted a way out. In early 1956 Fuchs sailed back to London, leaving eight men to over-winter at Shackleton.