Air Passenger and Cargo Transportation in Alaska

PROPERTYOF ISER , FILECOPY DoNot Remove REVIEW OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC CONDITIONS A UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA, INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND GOVERNMENT RESEARCH VOL. VI, NO. 2 AIRPASSENGER ANDCARGO TRANSPORTATION IN ALASKA The air transportation industry in Alaska is undergoing March that they were beginning an Alaskan Service Inves dramatic changes, which are likely to further strengthen tigation . In an announcement to the airlines and other in its economic value to the state. New technology and trans terested parties, the CAB stated; "The board has decided port needs are increasing carrier competitiveness, while to undertake a comprehensive review of major route pat rising equipment and operating costs are lowering profit terns serving Alaska. margins. These conditions, plus growing reluctance on the " It has been over ten years since the board completed part of the federal government to subsidize less efficient an extensive examination of intra-Alaska air transporta operations, have resulted in attempts to increase efficiency tion requirements and almost four years since we last ex through airline mergers . amined the need for realignment and rievision of the four In 1967, Western Airlines International, plagued by an carrier air route complex between the Pacific Northwest announced profit squeeze on its western continental U.S. and Alaska. Significant changes in recent years suggest and Mexican routes, purchased Seattle based Pacific that the time is now ripe for a broad-scale investigation Northern Airlines and expanded operations into Alaska. into Alaskan air transportation requirements. A sound air Alaska Airlines in the past two years acquired Cordova transportation system is vital to the Alaskan economy and Airlines ( the former Coastal and Ellis_Airlines), extending the board intends to examine the entire Alaskan air route its routes throughout Southeastern Alaska and into Dawson, structure to determine what changes are necessary to pro Y.T., Canada. The two major intra-Alaska carriers, Wien vide for better service to the public, improved scheduling Air Alaska, Alaska's oldest airline, and ·Nor:thern Consoli and operational flexibility for the carriers, elimination of dated Airlines, joined forces in 1968 to form Wien Consoli uneconomic and wasteful competition, and reduction of dated Airlines. These combined major city and bush federal subsidy payments.'' routes extend from Juneau to the Arctic Ocean and The coming introduction of jet aircraft that can carry Bering Sea coasts. more than 100 tons of freight or up to 400 passengers, plus Settlement of the long standing Trans-Pacific Route the increasing cargo requirements resulting from oil ac Case, which has been in the works since the mid-1950's, tivity on the Arctic Slope, are additional factors effecting · will bring additional changes in Alaskan aviation. major changes in the Alaska air transportation picture. President Richard Nixon, after rescinding and review HISTORY OF AVIATION IN ALASKA ing routes approved by the Johnson Administration, granted The era of the airplane in Alaska began on the Fourth Pan American World Airways a route from New York to of July, 1914, when a group of Fairbanks businessmen spon Tokyo via Fairbanks. Approval of a Western Airlines route sored an aerial circus and brought pioneer aviator James from Anchorage to Honolulu is expected in the near future. Martin north with his flying machine. The businessmen The Pacific Northwest-California route case also affects hoped to make a profit by selling seats in the ballpark to Alaska. watch the take-off and landing . The undertaking was not Growing interstate, intrastate and international traffic a financial success . Few people came to the ballpark al is putting great strains on aircraft facilities in Alaska. An though hundreds climbed trees and sat on roofs, as Martin, upsurge in airport and facility construction is expected. for nine minutes, circled the gold rush city at an altitude The Civil Aeronautics Board, the federal regulatory of 400 feet. agency concerning airline operations, announced late in Commercial aviation began in Alaska during the early PAGE 2 UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA, INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND GOVERNMENT RESEARCH ing between the lower states and the Territory of Alaska ALASKA REVIEW OF BUSINESS since 1929, beginning with the first flight in a Lockheed AND ECONOMIC CONDITIONS Vega of Ancel Eckmann for Alaska Washington Airways. VOL. VI, NO. 2 The 1930's witnessed a steady growth in the use of air~ April, 1969 craft in the Northland. It was the era when men like Fred Published by the Institute of Social, Economic and Government Research, Moller decided the plane could be used as a prospecting University of Alaska, College, Alaska tool, when Harold Gillam proved that radios and instru William R. Wood-President, University of Alaska ments would make planes useful in bad weather, and when Victor Fischer-Director, Institute of Social, Economic Bob Reeve, now president of Reeve Aleutian Airways, pio- and Government Research James D. Babb, Jr. Judy M. Brady Institute Editor Terry T. Brady - Author Review Editor It was an era when planes were identified by the men and the exploits of the men who flew them. Sig Wien, Art Woodley, Ray Peterson, John Cross, Jim Dodson, Sam 0. 1920's, as pilots decided to try their luck on the last fron White, Merle "Mudhole" Smith, Shell Simmons, Alex Hol tier. One of the foremost of these men was Carl Ben Eiel den, Russell Merrill, Bob Ellis, and Archie Ferguson are son, a Fairbanks schoolteacher, who like other early bush but a few of those who brought the air age to Alaska pilots became a legend in his time. prior to World War II. Several of these former pilots are Eielson inaugurated the first air mail service in Alas still active in aviation as executives of the combines that ka, flying a DeHaviland between Fairbanks and McGrath have succeeded the small operators of that time. during the winter of 1924. He covered the distance in a few The 1920's and 1930's was also the period when global hours, whereas it took dog team drivers three weeks to air pioneers realized the strategic importance of Alaska, make the round trip. In 1928, Eielson, in company of Cap both in military and civil aviation. General Billy Mitchell tain George Wilkins, made the first airplane flight across sponsored a flight of the Black Wolf Squadron, U.S. Army the Arctic Ocean, from Alaska to Spitzbergen. Air Service, from New York to Alaska in 1920. Mitchell had The route, over the northern tip of Greenland, pio previously served in Alaska with the Signal Corps. It took neered the way for World War II military flights and the the squadron, in four open DeHaviland planes, six weeks much later commercial flights that began at the end of to make the trip to Fairbanks. From Fairbanks they flew the 1950's. Eielson was only 32 years old when he crashed to Nome, and would have pioneered a route to Siberia, if and was killed near Siberia in 1930, while going to the aid the Army had allowed it. of the Nanuk, a fur trading ship frozen in the arctic pack The route from Alaska westward to Siberia was to be ice. flown by thousands of lend lease planes entering Russia Other pilots were also testing the airways of Alaska from the United States by the "back door" during World when Eielson was making his historic flights. Noel Wien, War II. The Cold War that has enveloped the world since with his pilot's license signed by Orville Wright, came north World War II has also made Alaska an important military in 1924 to join the Fairbanks Airplane Company. Later, basing area for aircraft. Defensive interceptors, surveil with his brothers, he founded Wien Alaska Airlines which is lance aircraft, and huge tankers have all been used along now a major part of Wien Consolidated Airlines. In March the Soviet Arctic frontier. 1929,Wien made the first flight between Alaska and Siberia. However, it is in world wide civil aviation that Alaska Joe Crosson, A. A. Bennett, and Harold Gillam were has come into its own. Since the late 1950's when Scandi others who pioneered commercial flying in Alaska. Cros navian Airlines System, the giant co-operative airline of son, a veteran pilot, and Gillam, then a neophyte, flew Sweden, Norway and Denmark, made its maiden polar open cockpit planes in search of Eielson in 1930. It was flight from Europe to Japan via Anchorage, Alaska has Gillam, himself to die following a crash in Southeastern been referred to as the "air crossroads of the world." Anch Alaska during World War II, who found Eielson and his orage now has one of the world's most important interna mechanic, Earl Borland, near the Siberian coastline. tional airports, with multi-daily flights stopping enroute to Crosson, who worked for Eielson, helped merge Eiel and from the continental United States and the Orient, son's company and several other early Alaskan flying and from the Orient to Europe. services into Pacific Alaska Airways, a subsidiary of Pan Groundwork for this key position began early in the American World Airways. The Pan American combine aviation history of Alaska. The flight of the Black Wolf helped establish local scheduled routes in Alaska, and in Squadron, Carl Ben Eielson and George Wilkin's pioneer 1940, inaugurated the first scheduled service between Alas flight across the Arctic, the early operations of Pan ka and Seattle. Some charter type services had been operat- American World Airways in Alaska and the exploits of UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA, INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND GOVERNMENT RESEARCH PAGE 3 Wiley Post and famed humorist Will Rogers (who were killed near Barrow in 1935 on a round the world flight) TABLE 2 all contributed.

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