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REEVE AIRWAYS: United States (1932-1947). Following an airmail piloting career for Pan American-Grace Airways (PANAGRA) in South America, Robert C. “Bob” Reeve relocates to Alaska where he launches Reeve Airways at Valdez, on August 25, 1932. The enterprise initially employs an Eaglerock biplane leased from local businessman Owen Meals, to fly contract supply services to the mining town of Chisana.

With the proceeds earned, Reeves travels to Fairbanks in the spring of 1933 where he purchases (partially on credit) a Fairchild 51 cabin monoplane. Returning to Valdez, he agrees to undertake the supply of the Big Four Mine, owned by Clarence Poy, which is located 30 miles from Valdez and some 6,000 ft. up on the Brevier Glacier. Over 30 tons are transported during the first month at 50 per pound.

In 1936, Reeve obtains a larger aircraft, a Fairchild 71. The 2-plane charter carrier flies a variety of ad hoc passenger and cargo flights around Valdez during the next 3 years (including over 2,000 landings on glaciers). During this time, he transports in excess of 500 tons of supplies.

Disaster strikes in 1939. The Fairchild 71 is wrecked in a spring windstorm, forcing Reeve to invest much time in its repair. During the summer, the hangar in which he houses the monoplane, together with the aircraft itself, burn up in a fire. Finally, the new Civil Aeronautics Authority (CAA) informs him that, because he has been largely inactive since spring, he has not staked a sufficient claim to “grandfather rights” on air routes earlier flown. Going broke, Reeve and his family relocate to Fairbanks in 1940 where he resumes nonscheduled work on behalf of Noel Wien.

In April 1941, the pioneer airman accepts a contract from the CAA to explore Alaska’s interior for a series of airfields. During the summer, Reeve hauls supplies on behalf of the Morrison-Knudsen Company for the construction of a new airfield at Northway, 100 mi. N of Fairbanks. His own airplane is at first employed; later, a Boeing 80A is acquired by M-K from United Air Lines. Painted bright yellow, it is christened The Yellow Peril. The two aircraft haul 300 workers and 1,100 tons of supplies and materials to the construction site by mid-November.

During World War II, Reeve flies charter flights, without instruments or navigational aids, to the Aleutian Islands with a red Fairchild 71 and the Boeing 80A, now painted black. In November 1942, a contract is signed with the Alaska Communications System for personnel transport on surveys about the territory. On a trip to Cold Bay with radar equipment and technicians in 1943, the Fairchild 71 crash-lands in fog and must be written off. During these years, Reeve conceives the idea of an airline for those far-flung Bering Sea islands.

After purchasing a war-surplus Douglas C-47 (military DC-3) in February 1946, he begins irregular service in April between Fairbanks and Seattle. In 53 days, Reeve and 2 other pilots complete 26 roundtrips and earn $96,000, sufficient to pay for their Douglas transport and acquire 3 more. Under pressure from the CAB, the route is given up later in the year.

Reeve now files an application with the CAB seeking route authority for a scheduled service from Anchorage to Attu. Meanwhile, M-K gives Reeve The Yellow Peril in lieu of a debt payment. C-47 charter flights are inaugurated over the 1,783-mile route to Attu, as well as to other Territory of Alaska destinations. On March 24, 1947, the pilot-owner incorporates his assets as Reeve Aleutian Airways.

REEVE ALEUTIAN AIRWAYS: United States (1947-2001). On March 24, 1947, pilot-owner Robert C. “Bob” Reeve incorporates his assets and changes the name of his firm from Reeve Airways to Reeve Aleutian Airways in celebration of his market area. Employing 4 war-surplus Douglas C-47s (military DC-3s), the carrier begins flying an island-hopping 1,783-mile route from Anchorage to Attu that is certified by the CAB on April 8, 1948. Meanwhile, back in January, a Grumman G-21 Goose is acquired. During the year, a Beech T-50 and a Lockheed Model 10B Electra are also found, but are traded for a pair of Sikorsky S-43 amphibians (one purchased from Hawaiian Air Lines). These aircraft can be used to land at coastal communities and Cold Bay that do not have an airport.

A number of former military bases are given over to company maintenance beginning in 1949. The aircraft FBO/maintenance firm Pacific Airmotive is purchased in 1950, together with that company’s facilities at Merrill Field, Anchorage. Reeve acquires additional Douglas transports and a Post Office airmail contract. Surplus bomb releases from junked military bombers are installed aboard company DC-3s and employed to release mail bundles in the Pribilof Islands. On July 12, two Sikorsky S-43s are purchased from bankrupt Los Angeles Air Service.

During 1951, Reeve suffers two heart attacks, forcing him to take the next year off for recuperation. The old terminal once shared by Pacific Northern Airlines and Alaska Airlines at Merrill Field is, meanwhile, taken over for the same purpose in 1952. In 1956, Reeve becomes the last airline to leave Merrill Field for the new Anchorage International Airport.

In early 1957, the twenty-fifth anniversary year, the company acquires a DC-4 from defunct 20th Century Airlines; painted red, white, and blue, it is placed in service from Anchorage to Attu on March 12 via Kodiak, Cold Bay, Adak, Amchitka, and Shemya. The carrier now leaves government subsidy and two surplus Curtiss C-46 Commandos are acquired from Cordova Airlines, which provide transport to workers building the DEW Line.

The last Sikorsky S-43 is traded in for a Grumman G-21 Goose on March 3, 1958; it will pass to Avalon Air Transport. A C-46F crash-lands at Driftwood Bay on May 31; the plane is a total wreck, but both crewmen are safe.

Another DC-4 in acquired in July, but it crashes on Great Sirkin Island in September. A replacement C-46, purchased from Boreas Corporation, also arrives in July.

A third DC-4 arrives in 1959, along with another C-46. Unhappily, the newest Douglas transport, with 5 crew and 11 passengers, crashes on an Aleutian peak at Great Sitkin Island on September 25 while en route from Anchorage to Adak; there are no survivors.

In 1960, the old Boeing 80A The Yellow Peril, in storage for 14 years, is withdrawn; it will be reclaimed, restored, and transferred to the Museum of Flight in Seattle.

A DC-6, once the queen of the Olympic Airways, S. A. fleet and the personal property of Aristotle Onassis, is purchased from Alaska Airlines in January 1962. It is placed into service on February 10. A DC-4 is sold to Alaska Airlines in December. Two more follow, one each in 1963 and 1964 Following the great earthquake in March of the latter year, the company’s downtown Anchorage ticket office burns down in November. Still, enplanements for the year are 20,765 and revenues total $4.3 million.

Airline employment in 1965 stands at 145 and the fleet includes 12 aircraft: 3 C-46s, 1 DC-3A, 2 DC-6Bs, 1 DC-6A, 3 C-54s, and 2 Grum-man G-21A Geese. In May, a DC-3 with five aboard is lost in a ground loop takeoff crash at Nikolski.

The C-54s are also sold as passenger boardings jump to 22,889.

A C-46 is purchased in January 1966 and it enters service in June. Meanwhile, another Commando is damaged in a February accident at Homer. Piloted by Hank Orth, a DC-6 flies Annabelle, an elephant and the first acquisition of the Alaska Zoo, from Nome to her Anchorage home.

Enplanements for the year are 23,000.

A new Anchorage office building is occupied in 1967. As the year ends, the workforce totals 162 and the fleet includes 12 aircraft: 3 DC-3s, 4 C-46s, 3 DC-6s, and 2 Grumman G-21As. Orders are outstanding for a Lockheed L-188 Electra and a pair of Beech 99s.

Peninsula Airways (1) contracts with Reeve to provide contract flights linking King Salmon with Egegik, Ugashik, Pilot Point, South Naknek, and Levelock. Piper and Cessna lightplanes are employed. Over the next decade, Convair CV-580s and de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otters are occasionally leased from the partner.

Customer bookings ascend to 27,320 and a total of 3.43 million freight ton-miles are flown.

Following a credit check, Bob Reeve is able to purchase, via California Airmotive, a Lockheed L-188C Electra from Air New Zealand, Ltd. in January 1968. The big turboprop enters service on May 2 and is initially employed to fulfill a government contract for the transport of nuclear test personnel from Anchorage to Amchitka Island. Later, it will also operate along the route from Anchorage to Adak via Cold Bay.

At decade’s end, the fleet comprises the L-188, 3 DC-6s, 2 DC-3s, 3 C-47s, and 2 G-21s. The workforce is now down to 131.

Enplanements for 1969 total 33,000 and 2.67 million freight ton-miles are flown. Operating income is $5.67 million.

Beginning in the spring of 1970, Peninsula Airways (1) launches regular service between King Salmon and the Pribilof Island communities of St. Paul and St. George. Charters are undertaken with Grumman Super Widgeons wet-leased from Reeve to Dutch Harbor, Atka, and Adak.

In September, a second Electra, an L-188PF, is purchased by Reeve from Western Airlines.

Customer bookings for the year are 34,000 and a total of 2.17 million freight-ton miles are flown. The workforce is 153.

Coming in on a service from Anchorage to Nondalton on February 10, 1971, Flight 012, a C-46D with two crew, noses up upon touchdown, at which point the entire nose section breaks off; although the Curtiss must be written off, there are no fatalities.

This year’s enplanements are 36,034.

Another ex-Western L-188PF arrives in June 1972. A Grumman G-21 Goose is acquired from Alaska Coastal Airlines. It replaces a Goose written off at False Pass earlier in the month. Reeve Aleutian now begins to phase its DC-6s out of passenger service. The company’s first brand new airliners are purchased in June: two Nihon YS-11As with spares for $4.2 million. The first enters service on November 28.

At the end of this significant growth year, airline employment is 154. Passenger boardings accelerate 16.2% to 43,000 and cargo is up by 12.4%.

Twelve new employees are hired in 1973. The second YS-11A enters service shortly after its receipt in January. Customer bookings jump 14% to 49,000, but freight traffic is off by 12.8%.

Airline employment in 1974 is 230. The C-46 purchased in 1966 is sold to Fairbanks Air Service in early spring. Another one is lost with an L-188PF in a November 6 fire that destroys Reeve’s Anchorage hangar.

Enplanements accelerate 4.1% to 51,000 and the number of FTKs flown jumps 10.2% to 3.21 million.

The workforce shrinks to 189 in 1975. The burned-out Curtiss is replaced in the spring with a unit purchased from the Japanese carrier Toa Domestic Airlines Company, Ltd. Later in the year, a DC-3 is sold to Northern Air Cargo.

Passenger boardings decline 7.8% to 47,000 while cargo is down by 21.9%.

The number of employees is increased by 14.8% in 1976 to 217. A new $2-million administration facility and maintenance hangar is occupied at Anchorage in May, replacing the one destroyed by fire in November 1974.

Customer bookings jump 14.9% to 54,000 while cargo declines by 10.2% to 2.25 million FTKs.

Two Grumman Goose amphibians are sold to Peninsula Airways on February 1, 1977. These are employed to expand the subcontract to all of Reeve’s bush points throughout the Alaskan Peninsula and Aleutian Islands. To assist in the performance of this task, Peninsula sets up an operating base at Cold Bay, complete with offices, hangars, and employee housing. These contract and charter services will be maintained through 1979.

A former Eastern Air Lines L-188A Electra, obtained by lease-purchase, is placed into service on July 27. Four months later, at the end of October, the new L-188A is sold to American Jet Industries as partial trade for another.

The L-188PF, once flown by Air New Zealand, Ltd., arrives from AJI in March 1978. Following passage of the Airline Deregulation Act in October, President Richard D. Reeve approaches the CAB for authority to fly down to Seattle and Tacoma, a market abandoned under pressure from that agency 32 years earlier. The three DC-6s and another DC-3 are sold to Northern Air Cargo owner Bobby Sholton.

Enplanements for the year total 55,209, revenues are $12.1 million, and the net profit is $534,400.

The workforce in 1979 stands at 204. Approval is duly received for a Seattle run and an Electra legally departs Cold Bay for Washington State on April 2.

The first 9 months of this new route help boost the carrier’s overall passenger traffic 28.3% to 77,000. Many are pleased to see financial growth as well. Revenues are up 28% to $16.9 million and, in a far cry from 1940, a net profit of $835,000, up 36%, is banked.

The employee population climbs by 3% in 1980 to 210. A fourth YS-11A is purchased from Gabon and arrives at Anchorage in May after making the company’s longest flight, 6,012 nautical miles. Under terms of the CAB’s new airline classification scheme, the company is rated as a “large regional.” All of this good news cannot, however, erase the sadness when the first and only chief pilot, W. R. “Bill” Borland, dies of a heart attack on February 11 and founder/chairman Bob Reeve passes away in his sleep on August 25 at the age of 78.

Reeve Aleutian flies 82,000 passengers (up 6.5%) on the year and posts a net profit of $1.58 million on total revenues of $21.7 million.

The roundtrip Cold Bay-Seattle frequencies reach three per week early in 1981. During the year, Beth Day publishes a biography of the founder, Glacier Pilot: The Story of Bob Reeve and the Flyers Who Pioneered Alaska's Skies in Single-Engine Planes (Sausalito, Calif.: Comstock Editions).

Although passenger traffic dips 7.3% to 77,240, the Anchorage-based pioneer still records revenues of $23.6 million, an operating gain of $2.1 million, and a net profit of $1.3 million.

A YS-11Ais involved in an accident at King Salmon, Alaska, on February 16, 1982, and for lack of traffic, nonstop Cold Bay to Seattle and Tacoma flights are suspended in the spring. Nevertheless, the company happily celebrates and promotes its Golden Anniversary.

Passenger boardings and freight traffic both fall. The former declines 14.5% to 66,0411 while the latter dips 2.9% to 4.4 million pounds. On revenues of $23.4 million, profits are earned: $406,000 (operating) and $607,000 (net). Both figures are down from the previous year.

Nonstop Cold Bay to Seattle and Tacoma flights are resumed with Electras on May 16, 1983.

Headed for Seattle from Cold Bay with 15 passengers aboard on June 8, an Electra suffers a propeller failure on its No. 2 engine. It also has a jammed throttle and landing gear, but makes a safe emergency landing at Anchorage after circling the airport to burn off fuel; no injuries are reported, but the aircraft is badly damaged.

While the Electra is repaired, an L-188C is purchased from Zantop International Airlines in September. During the fall, the company completes two years of airlift from Anchorage to St. Paul Island in support of oil exploration in the Bering Sea’s Navarin Basin.

Traffic also declines this year, down 17% to 53,250, but with the acquisition from Wien Air Alaska in December of two Boeing 727-22QCs (christened RCR and Tilly after Mr. and Mrs. Bob Reeve), the company enters the jet era.

Employment grows by 1.7% in 1984 to 305. The Zantop acquisition is withdrawn as soon as the Electra damaged in June is returned to duty; the retired plane will be used for spare parts during the remainder of the decade. The RCR enters service on April 2 and helps to reverse three years of downward traffic drift.

The number of enplanements rises 7.1% during these 12 months to 55,600. Cargo, meanwhile, accelerates back up to 3.3 million pounds. Expenses outrun revenues and as a result there are losses: $1.5 million (operating) and $213,000 (net).

B-727-22QCs replace Electras on the nonstop Cold Bay to Tacoma and Seattle service on May 12, 1985. Converted to freighter status, the Tilly flies contract mail service in December during the U. S. Post Office’s backlogged Christmas season.

Passenger boardings climb 8.9% to 61,000 and freight races upward by 16.2% to 8.4 million pounds. Revenues total $25 million, an 18.8% boost, while low costs allow an operating profit of $712,000 and net gain of $455,000.

The fleet in 1986 includes the RCR and Tilly, 3 YS-11As, and 2 L-188A Electras. In February, one of the latter is flown nonstop from Cold Bay to Honolulu, where it undertakes a three-month interisland freight contract on behalf of Aloha Airlines. Following its return from Hawaii, the Electra is leased to Northwest Territorial Airways, Ltd. in September. For lack of traffic, the nonstop Cold Bay to Tacoma and Seattle flights are ended.

Customer bookings decline 16% to 51,000 and revenues fall an equal 16% to $21 million.

The 300-employee small regional suffers another bad traffic year in 1987.

Passenger boardings fall 11.3% to 47,000, while freight declines 17.4% to 6.06 million pounds. Revenues reach $21 million and costs are held low, allowing profits of $590,000 (operating) and $976,000 (net).

The workforce is cut by 14% to 228 in 1988. At the end of January, a Lockheed Electra is leased to Aloha Airlines for interisland air freight operations.

Customer bookings decline again, dropping 6.4% to 44,000. Cargo, on the other hand, balloons 72.2% to 3.23 FTKs. Revenues are off a slight 0.4% to $21.8 million, but expenses are up by 4.4%. As a result, there is a $441,000 operating loss. The net profit falls to $760,000.

Airline employment grows by 31.6% in 1989 to 300 and the fleet now includes the RCR and Tilly, 3 Electras, and 3 YS-11As.

In April, Reeve is one of five Alaskan air carriers subpoenaed by the DOJ to provide information in an investigation of possible antitrust violations in the airline industry. Together with Peninsula Airways (1), Frontier Flying Service, Ryan Air Service, and Alaska Airlines, Reeve is required to supply documents dating back to January 1, 1984 to a May 9 grand jury session or forward them directly to Washington. Although the airline subpoenas do not name a target, the May 6 issue of the Anchorage Daily News reports the subject is MarkAir.

Passenger boardings bottom out and, in fact, increase by 40% to 61,610. Freight continues to move along, climbing to 4.5 million FTKs. Revenues increase by 30% to $28.43 million, expenses jump 12.8% to $25.17 million, and operating income is $3.26 million. Net gain swells to $3.25 million.

There are no changes in 1990 in either employment or fleet. In July, the company becomes the 15th member of the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan frequent flyer program.

After Iraq invades Kuwait at the beginning of August, the USAF notifies Reeve on August 7 that under the Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) program, two of its L-188Fs may be asked to aid in Operation Desert

Shield, the U. S. troop buildup in Saudi Arabia. Reeve and Northern Air Cargo are the only two Alaskan airlines involved in the program.

Customer bookings fall by 7%, to 56,715 and cargo plunges 50.4% to 5.03 million FTKs. Revenues, however, advance by 4.1% to $29.6 and costs allow an operating profit of $1 million and net gain of $2.76 million.

Company employment grows by 6.7% in 1991 to 320. On May 21, President Reeve joins state officials at an Anchorage travel fair for Japanese tour agents and press to announce the inauguration of thrice-weekly scheduled Anchorage to Chitose service for the following year. A test charter, arranged by Pacific Tours and Reeve, will be operated in late July.

The first-of-a-kind charter flight between Chitose and Anchorage, set for July 22, must be cancelled on July 21 because Reeve has been unable to arrange for a refueling stop at the sensitive USAF base in She-mya. Passengers for North America are rebooked roundtrip on a Japan Air Lines Company, Ltd. (2) service to Anchorage and on a Continental Airlines service to Seattle.

Passengers booked from Seattle to Anchorage are flown north by a Reeve B-727-22C. JAL and Continental return the tourists to Japan upon the completion of their visits. The embarrassing incident leads President Reeve to cancel any second trial flights.

Recession now comes to the Alaskan regional. After October, Reeve is able to remain out of the fare war that breaks out between Alaska Airlines and MarkAir. It does, however, affiliate itself with Alaska’s commuter network.

Passenger boardings fall 6.6% to 53,252 and the decline in freight is not reported. Revenues drop 10.1% to $26.61 million while expenses climb 7.5% to $30.74 million. The operating loss is $4.12 million and the net loss is $1.45 million.

The payroll is cut 25% in 1992 to 240. In January, the carrier, together with Peninsula Airways and ERA Aviation, begin to coordinate their schedules and to exchange passengers with Alaska Airlines jetliners serving Anchorage. Reeve now ferries Alaska Airlines passengers to Dutch Harbor and other Aleutian chain towns.

Customer bookings rebound, climbing 13% to 61,000. Cargo, on the other hand, plunges 47.6% to 3.25 million FTKs and revenues slide to $24.8 million. The operating loss increases by $5.6 million while the net loss deepens by $2.7 million.

In 1993, Chairman Janice Reeve and President Richard Reeve oversee a workforce of 303 and operate the same fleet as in 1989. Plans are announced for the sale of the YS-11A-600 fleet.

Destinations served include Cold Bay, Port Heiden, San Point, Adak, Attu, Pribilof Islands, Shemya, and Unalaska/Dutch Harbor.

On August 30, the $7.6-million contract to fly servicemen and cargo from Elmendorf AFB at Anchorage to installations at Adak, Shemya, Galena, and King Salmon is won by Alaska Airlines. Loss of the arrangement will have a significant impact on Reeve’s annual traffic figures.

Frequencies to Sand Point are increased to six per day on October 30.

Another tough year is suffered as this time passenger enplanements join freight in decline. Boardings fall 9% to 55,515 passengers flown while cargo drops 3.3% to 3.14 million FTKs. Revenues are off by 1.7% to $24.42 million, but expenses hit $27.73 million. The operating loss is cut to $1.96 million and the net loss improves to $2.2 million.

Airline employment is increased by 5.6% in 1994 to 320 and the fleet now includes the 2 B-727-22Cs, 3 YS-11A-600s, and 1 each L-188AF, L-188C, and L-188CF. Five-times-a-week service to St. Paul is inaugurated on January 1.

In late May, an effort to pioneer a new international air route connecting cities near the Arctic Circle is launched. A B-727-22C carrying an FAA inspector, a Russian navigator, and a multinational group of politicians and entrepreneurs headed by Alaskan Governor Walter J. Hickel, undertakes a 27 1/2-hr. circumpolar expedition. Flying east, the Boeing visits a total of 15 airports above the 58th parallel in Russia, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Greenland, and Canada.

The U. S. military withdrawal from Adak during the year brings concerns for the future.

Customer bookings for the year as a whole decline another 16.4% to 46,000, while cargo slips 0.8% to 3.11 million FTKs. Revenues drop 13.4% to $21.15 million and although the percentage of rise is down 11.4%, expenses are $24.56 million. The operating loss moves to $3.41 million, while the net loss is down to $521,000.

The workforce grows 31.3% in 1995 to 240. Concerns over the continuing withdrawal of the U. S. military from Alaska are forgotten in April when MarkAir leaves the state for Denver.

Reeve, on May 30, adds scheduled twice-daily (except Sunday) B-727-22C return services of its own to Bethel and King Salmon, replacing those previously offered by MarkAir. Electras are also employed on the route.

On June 7, an L-188 with 5 crew and 17 passengers develops flap problems while on approach to its landing at Anchorage. Although assistance is requested, a safe emergency landing is completed and no injuries are reported.

By September, the carrier’s passenger volume has soared by 43%.

When Electras stop flying in Indonesia toward year’s end, Reeve becomes the last major commercial operator of the L-188.

Enplanements increase 47.8% to 68,000; however, freight declines 18.1% to 2.55 million FTKs. Once more there are losses: $2.86 million (operating) and $1.51 million (net).

There is no change in the workforce during 1996 and the fleet now includes 3 Electras and 2 B-727-22Cs.

Some 25 minutes out on an April 24 flight from Anchorage, an Elec-tra with 5 crew and 17 passengers loses its main hydraulic system. The aircraft returns to Anchorage and makes a safe emergency landing; no injuries are reported.

As the result of downsizing at Adak Naval Air Station, B-727 service to Adak is reduced to weekly on June 1; on July 1, it is halted altogether.

A new code-sharing agreement between Reeve and Alaska Airlines begins on September 22. The marketing agreement is designed to coordinate flights and schedules to and from Cold Bay, Dutch Harbor, Port Heiden, St. Paul, and Sand Point.

Passenger boardings this year soar another 25% to 85,000 but cargo drops again, by 8.6%, to 2.33 million FTKs.

Although operating income is up 6.7% to $27.25 million, costs rise 6.8% to $30.34 million. The operating loss deepens to $3.08 million and a $1.93-million net loss is suffered.

The employee population is increased by 31.3% in 1997 to 315.

A company B-727-22C transports Alaskan governor Tony Knowles and a trade mission to Sakhalin in April to assist Alaska companies prepare for the development of Sakhalin’s oil and gas resources.

In cooperation with Circumpolar Expeditions, weekly return charter flights are initiated on May 10 from Anchorage to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. The flights represent the first scheduled charter air service for passengers and cargo between Alaska and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.

Alaskan state legislators undertake a joint business and government trade mission to Siberia aboard a Reeve charter on September 27. The weekly flights into the Russian Far East are suspended on December 1.

Customer bookings this year decline by 11.8% to 75,000, but freight skyrockets 80.9% to 4.21 million FTKs.

Operating revenues increase 8.7% to $29.63 million, but expenses grow 5.9% to $32.14 million. The operating loss declines to $2.51 million, while the net loss increases to $2.71 million, later adjusted to $1.66 million.

Destinations visited from Anchorage in 1998 include Adak, Bethel, Cold Bay, Dillingham, Dutch Harbor, King Salmon, Port Heiden, Sand Point, and St. Paul Island. Charters to Seattle and Siberia continue to be flown, as are flights for hunters and fishermen. Weekly charters to the Russian Far East resume in early May.

In September, the carrier announces that because of high maintenance costs, it will withdraw its three Lockheed Electras by the end of the upcoming first quarter.

It is announced on December 11 that the company will launch scheduled twice-weekly roundtrips from Anchorage to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. When introduced, the new service will replace the current charter flights.

During the 12 months, passenger boardings increase by 6.7% to 80,000, while cargo traffic increases 67.1% to 3.95 million FTKs. Revenues climb 5.5% to $31.27 million, but costs total $32.99 million. The operating loss improves to $1.71 million, while the net loss does the same, dropping to $1.31 million.

Although a grand retirement ceremony has been planned for the last L-188 operation on March 31, 1999, the decision is taken not to withdraw the turboprops after all. The new scheduled service to the Russian Far East begins in the spring.

President Dick Reeve warns the FAA on December 7 of possible retaliatory actions from Russia on January 1 when new U. S. noise abatement rules will force Aeroflot Russian International Airlines (ARIA)

To stop flying its smoky Ilyushin Il-62Ms beyond Alaska to Seattle. An obvious response would be to curtail Reeve and Alaskan Airlines services into the Russian Far East.

Customer bookings dip 3.8% during the year to 77,000, while cargo is down 4.8% to 7.337,000 FTKs. Revenues are off by 26% to $23,135,000, while expenses fall 27.1% to $24,048,000. The company’s losses improve to $913,000 (operating) and $325,000 (net).

Airline employment at the beginning of 2000 stands at 350, an 11.1% increase over the previous 12 months. The company declares Chapter XI bankruptcy on December 6 and halts all scheduled operations. Both Alaska Airlines and Peninsula Airways agree to accept tickets from Reeve passengers booked through December 8.

Charter and contract service flights are continued as the pioneer reorganizes. At this point, having sold an L-188C to a Canadian source, it retains one Electra and two B-727-22Cs Both are reported parked at Anchorage at the end of the year, one missing many pieces. For the year as a whole, passenger boardings fall another 13% to 67,000.

Unable to continue, the Aleutian pioneer will close its doors on March 31,2001.

REEVES AIR: United States (1980-1988). The charter and contract service operator Reeves Aviation is established by the brothers Douglas and William “Bill” Reeves at Honolulu in 1980. Nonscheduled Cessna 402 flight-seeing tours are offered. Two years later, in 1982, a scheduled division, Reeves Air, is set up and employing a fleet of 4 Cessna 402Cs, begins passenger and cargo flights linking the company base with Kahului and Kaunakakai. Frequencies to Lanai are introduced in 1983.

Operations cease in May 1987 when the FAA grounds the carrier, claiming FAR maintenance violations involving its three Cessnas. The company does not resume operations in 1988 and the FAA lifts its operating certificate.