Alaska Seaplanes is helping form a new airline, Aleutian Airways, which will serve the Anchorage- Unalaska route beginning soon. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)

Alaska Seaplanes is helping form a new airline, Aleutian Airways, which will serve the Anchorage- Unalaska route beginning soon. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)

Juneau-based airline expands to Southwest Alaska under new flag

The focus is initially going to be on a single service route.

Alaska Seaplanes, partnered with a number of other companies, will launch a new service from Anchorage to Unalaska beginning in the fall.

Aleutian Airways is a joint venture between Seaplanes, Wexford Capital and Mckinley Alaska Private Investment, according to a recent news release from Seaplanes.

“Our main operations here won’t change. But it’s a new exciting part of our portfolio,” said Seaplanes marketing manager Andy Kline in a phone interview. “We think there’s an opportunity to provide good service out there, service that the people will prefer. That’s what we hope.”

The company will be flying the Saab 2000, a turboprop airliner from Swedish defense manufacturer Saab. The aircraft and many of the flight and support personnel will come from recently dissolved airline PenAir, Kline said.

[Arctic Circling back: Former Empire reporter talks newswriting in Svalbard]

“Ravn [Alaska] is out there right now and they fly. But the Saab 2000 is a bigger and faster airplane than what’s out there right now,” Kline said. “Our research indicated they were the most capable planes for the route.”

Seaplanes’ role in operations will be largely back-office functions while Sterling Airways, a Wexford subsidiary, flies and maintains the aircraft, said Seaplanes President Kent Craford in a phone interview.

“We know how to work with communities in rural Alaska and that’s what we’ve done for 25 years. And Sterling knows how to capably fly large aircraft. It’s the best of both worlds,” Craford said. “Our job is really in the back office. Sterling will be employing most of the folks in Anchorage. They’ll be doing the day to day operations.”

Kent Craford, president of Alaska Seaplanes, is co-owner of a new joint venture, Aleutian Airways, which will serve the Anchorage- Unalaska route in Southwest Alaska. (Courtesy photo / Alaska Seaplanes)

Kent Craford, president of Alaska Seaplanes, is co-owner of a new joint venture, Aleutian Airways, which will serve the Anchorage- Unalaska route in Southwest Alaska. (Courtesy photo / Alaska Seaplanes)

The western expansion is in line with Seaplanes’ corporate desire to expand within the state, focusing on serving the smaller communities, Craford said.

“We’ve transformed our fleet in the last 10 years into the largest fleet of turbine commuter aircraft in Southeast Alaska,” Craford said. “It’s a lot of what we’ve learned in the Southeast that we’re taking into the Southwest with Aleutian.”

The Saab 2000 allows for superior performance in the technically demanding Anchorage-Unalaska route, Craford said, which measures just under 800 miles in straight-line flight. The Saab’s fuel capacity allow for the aircraft to make the flight in one hop without a stop for refueling, Craford said.

“[Unalaska has] a short runway, it’s an incredibly long distance, and alternate runways are far away. [The aircraft] also has to be fast enough to outrun the weather. Weather out there changes at a moment’s notice,” Craford said. “It’s a huge comparative advantage with the currently scheduled service.”

The expansion will not affect operations for Seaplanes customers in the Southeast, Craford said. Aleutian airlines will release flight schedules in the coming month, Craford said.

“We’re not looking to go all over the state. We’re not looking to go to Tokyo or Seoul,” Craford said. “We’re looking to fly to Unalaska/Dutch Harbor and get really dialed in, to focus.”

• Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or mlockett@juneauempire.com.

More in News

The Norwegian Bliss arrives in Juneau on Monday, April 14, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
Ships in port for the week of May 11

This information comes from the Cruise Line Agencies of Alaska’s 2024 schedule.… Continue reading

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)
Police calls for Tuesday, May 13, 2025

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)
Police calls for Monday, May 12, 2025

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

A sign for a store that accepts food stamps and exchange benefits transfer cards is seen in this 2019 photo. (Scott Heins/Getty Images)
Alaska gives food stamp recipients’ personal information to federal officials

Data sharing part of nationwide request by Trump administration; appears to be targeting migrants.

Rep. Jeremy Bynum, R-Ketchikan, speaks to Rep. Calvin Schrage, I-Anchorage, during a vote on amendments to the state’s capital budget on Monday, May 12, 2025. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Amid budget struggle, Alaska has little money for new construction or renovation

State’s capital budget about to pass Legislature with no projects for individual legislators’ districts.

Sen. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka, at center, sits among senators during a joint session of the Alaska Legislature on Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Most Alaskans nominated for state boards and commissions get Legislature’s approval this year

One nominee was rejected on a 0-60 vote, which may be a first for the Alaska Legislature.

A person uses a garden hose in an effort to save a neighboring home from catching fire during the Eaton Fire on Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, California. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Dozens of members of Congress from both parties plead with Trump to unfreeze FEMA grants

Sen. Murkowski part of group drafting letter urging FEMA to begin spending already OK’d by Congress.

The six members of a joint House-Senate conference committee appointed to resolve differences in their versions of next year’s proposed state budget sign documents at their initial meeting Tuesday, May 13, 2025, at the Alaska State Capitol. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
PFD of $1,000 or $1,400? Ban on abortion funds or not? Fate of state’s budget now in hands of six legislators

Conference committee seeks to resolve 400 differences in House, Senate budgets as session nears end.

Boxes of sugary cereal, including those from General Mills, fill a store’s shelves on April 16, 2025, in Miami, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
US House Republican plan would force states to pay for a portion of SNAP benefits

State costs would increase with higher error rates — Alaska currently has the highest.

Most Read