VLT deep I-band surface brightness fluctuations of IC 4296

From theoretical predictions, the introduction of 8-m class telescopes perm its one to extend Surface Brightness Fluctuations measurements from the gro und to approximate to 7000 km/s, with a precision that is comparable to cur rent space-based measure ments. We have measured I-band SBF in IC 4296 in A bell 3565 at cz similar to 3630 km/s with the ESO Very Large Telescope. Ado pting the Tonry et al. (2000) calibration for I-band SBF we determined a di stance modulus of (<(I)over bar(o,k)> - <(M)over bar(I)>) = 33.44+/-0.17 ma g corresponding to a galaxy distance of 49+/-4 Mpc. This result is consiste nt with the HST observation from Lauer et al. (1998): (<(I)over bar(F814)> - <(M)over bar(F814)>) = 33.47 +/- 0.13 mag.