Yesterday I participated in the Anchorage Flyout, it was great to be a part of and my route to PADK (Adak, Alaska) had some truly amazing views. Adak Airport is the Westernmost airport in the US with commercial service as Alaska Airlines flies their 737s in twice a week from PANC. Adak is out on the Aleutian Islands and is almost 1200 miles away from Anchorage. Flight time was 2 hours and 25 minutes. Thanks to @CaptainMerka and @Butter_Boi for setting this up!
Approaching runway 36 which requires a very difficult 100 degree turn on final approach. (As I typed this I learned that Runway 36 is now permanently closed) And yes that is the runway down there
On no I missed this yesterday!! I was stationed at NAS Adak
in the early 90’s. I was an USN Aviation Electronics Technician at Naval Air Station Adak, was my first duty station The M.A.C. flight into Adak , “The Birthplace of the Winds” and Shemya was always an interesting, and quite frankly an unerving ride! Reeve Aleutian Airlines had the M.A.C. (Military Airlift Command) contract during my first year on the Adak , and they flew an old Lockheed L188 “Super Electra” in a “combi” setup, half passengers, half cargo. When I first walked up to the the Reeve L188 sitting on the ramp at Elmendorf AFB , I thought this has to be a mistake, lol ! OMG !
This can’t be the plane we’re about to fly over the tallest mountains in North America, and the across the cold cold Bering Sea! I was expecting a Military aircraft! Something built AFTER I was born! Lol! Thank God Reeve pilots were notoriously rugged Alaskan bush pilots, who could put planes down in almost any condition. Reeve Aleutian later lost the M.A.C. contract to an outfit named “Mark Air” who flew the daily M.A.C. flight to Adak and Shemya with a modern combi 737-800 . However Reeve Aleutian still operated a weekly public flight between Adak and Seattle using 1 of their 2 B727-200’s.
