ALASKAN AVIATION HISTORY From a painting by Stephen Hustvedt '72 Annapolis. Maryland The three-masted schooner Nanuk awaits its fate in the ice pack at North Cape, Siberia as the airmen and planes of three nations cluster about the ship in a mid-winter search for the lost Hamilton Metalplane of Carl Ben Eielson and Earl Borland during the winter of 1929-30. POLYNYAS PRESS Ill Copyright (C) 1990 by Robert W. Stevens All rights reserved. This book. or parts thereof. may not be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher. Inquiries should be addressed to the author at 244 SW 19lst Street. Seattle. Washington. 98166. The paper in this book meets guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on Library Resources. G£:l ISBN Number: 0-929427-01-7 (\'olumc Ii 0-929427-02-5 (Volume IIJ 0-929427-00-9 (6 Volume Set) Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 88-90907 Printed in Canada Polynyas Press P.O. Box 98904 Des Moines, Washington 98198 IV * * * * * emerging from the early era of liquid-cooled motors. whose vibrations loosened plumbing lines, with radiators that froze and burst in winter and boiled over in summer. Alaska's airmen were now being supplied with aircraft powered with reliable air-cooled engines of increasing power. Their way over this harsh environment would be eased * * * v CONTENTS Frontispiece in Color Title Page III Copyright IV Contents VII Volume II 1929-1930 XI 42 Ketchikan 1929 International Airways 540 Alaska-Washington Airways, Incorporated Gorst Air Transport, Incorporated 43 Juneau 1929 International Airways 554 Gorst Air Transport Alaska-Washington Airways Totem Air Service 44 Southeast 1929 Alaskan Aerial Survey Detachment 584 U.S. Navy 45 Cordova 1929 Gorst Air Transport 606 Clayton L. Scott and Gordon S. Graham 46 Valdez 1929 Gorst Air Transport 622 Meals Eaglerock Sales Company 47 Anchorage 1929 Anchorage Air Transport, Incorporated 628 Alaskan Airways. Incorporated .. VII 48 Interior 1929 Chicago to Siberia 652 Parker D. Cramer and Willard S. Gamble 49 Interior 1929 New York to Nome 660 Captain Ross G. Hoyt U.S. Army Air Corps. 50 Coastal 1929 Moscow to New York 668 Land qf'Sm·iets. ANT-4 51 Fairbanks 1929 Bennett-Rodebaugh Company 680 Wien Alaska Airways Alaskan Airways, Incorporated 52 Nome 1929 Bennett-Rodebaugh Company 750 Wien Alaska Airways Northern Air Transport, Incorporated 53 Ketchikan 1930 Alaska-Washington Airways. Consolidated 780 Gorst Air Transport Pioneer Airways, Incorporated 54 Juneau 1930 Alaska-Washington Airways 824 Pioneer Airways Air Land Manufacturing Company (E. J. A. '"Paddy" Burke) 55 Cordova 1930 Gillam Airways 866 C. Harold Gillam Gorst Air Transport Clayton L. Scott and John Selby 56 Valdez 1930 Gillam Airways 878 Meals Eaglerock Sales Company 57 Anchorage 1930 Alaskan Airways 890 Dorbandt & Cope Commercial Flying Service Pacific International Airways. Incorporated 58 Fairbanks 1930 Alaskan Airways 930 Eielson-Borland Relief Expedition Service Airlines Catholic Missions Bellanca Marquette Missionary VIII 59 Nome 1930 Alaskan Airways 1034 Eielson-Borland Relief Expedition Northern Air Transport Epilogue 1072 Bibliography 1074 Index 1076 IX VOLUME II ALASKAN AVIATION HISTORY 1929-1930 XI