Chat With The Boss
Mail and Supply Runs
Due to the awarded contract by the U.S. Government, starting immediately, we will be hauling U.S. Mail, cargo and supplies to various destinations and depots along the Aleutians Islands as far out as the Casco Cove Coast Guard Station on Attu. While government facilities will be our principal customers, our presence there (and the availability of a partially full cargo bin), also puts us in line to fill out our loads with package service for FedEx and UPS as well.
This was originally intended to be a DC-3 route only, but the unexpected backlog in standing freight now arriving in Homer has caused us to rethink this. It will be pilot’s choice to run this circuit in either the DC-3 or the Fairchild C-123, which can carry up to 15,000 pounds of freight!
Pilots will be welcome to “tag team” these long runs which means you can fly any leg of the route you wish and log only those hours/miles you actually flew. It will allow you to take the left seat and the log book at any destination along the “milk run,” start there, and fly on to the next. You can also fly part way out, lay over along the route and catch the next incoming bird home while the rest of your team takes the cargo all the way out to Casco Cove.
When you file your Pireps, list your flight number as AIMR00X (X representing the leg of the flight you flew). Here are the destinations and distances out and back:
Aleutian Island Milk Run
Leg #1: Homer (PAHO) – Port Heiden (PAPH)
PAPH: Elevation 95’, Runway 4,988’ –Gravel
Distance: 277 Miles
Leg #2: Port Heiden (PAPH) – Cold Bay (PACD)
PACD: Elevation 98”, Runway 10,401’ –Asphalt
Distance: 173 Miles
Leg #3: Cold Bay (PACD) – Unalaska (PADU)
PADU: Elevation 22’, Runway 3,895’ –Asphalt
Distance: 154 Miles
Leg #4: Unalaska (PADU) – Adak Island (PADK)
PADK: Elevation 18’, Runway 7,775’ –Asphalt
Distance: 385 Miles
Leg #5: Adak Island (PADK) – Attu (ATU)
ATU: Elevation 40’, Runway 5,800’ –Asphalt
Distance: 377 Miles
Then, turn around and come back!