And then there were two

Akutan said:
No I never had a girlfriend in the bush. Wow, maybe that's my problem.

As I stated in a previous post, maybe the one you're referring to, they stole the water we used to flush the toilets and wash our hands with in Bethel by draining the entire terminal water supply for deadhead ballast. It was also the little things like jumping with them out of Nome in winter and the F.O. saying, "Geez, this is cool. I've never been to Alaska before." Me: "How'd you get on with this outfit then?" Him: "My mom's friend works in human resources at Alaska."

I'm wrapping my criticism in agreement with @cropduster by saying part of the charm of Alaska relative to outside is the fragmented nature of the business. As the business strategy of the roll-up or the "wholly owned" creeps northward we'll probably see more of the "Raven" or Alaska Airlines/Virgin thing happening, accelerated perhaps by what is happening with the state budget.
Click to expand...
Unless oil takes off again the state budget will stay in the anaq bucket.
 
Akutan said:
No I never had a girlfriend in the bush. Wow, maybe that's my problem.

As I stated in a previous post, maybe the one you're referring to, they stole the water we used to flush the toilets and wash our hands with in Bethel by draining the entire terminal water supply for deadhead ballast. It was also the little things like jumping with them out of Nome in winter and the F.O. saying, "Geez, this is cool. I've never been to Alaska before." Me: "How'd you get on with this outfit then?" Him: "My mom's friend works in human resources at Alaska."

I'm wrapping my criticism in agreement with @cropduster by saying part of the charm of Alaska relative to outside is the fragmented nature of the business. As the business strategy of the roll-up or the "wholly owned" creeps northward we'll probably see more of the "Raven" or Alaska Airlines/Virgin thing happening, accelerated perhaps by what is happening with the state budget.
Click to expand...
I think the other thing you're seeing is that as safety demands that operations move to IFR and turbine equipment, and pilots get more difficult and expensive to attract and retain forcing moves to lower frequency with larger aircraft, only larger companies are able to absorb the overhead costs required to operate.
 
Roger Roger said:
I think the other thing you're seeing is that as safety demands that operations move to IFR and turbine equipment, and pilots get more difficult and expensive to attract and retain forcing moves to lower frequency with larger aircraft, only larger companies are able to absorb the overhead costs required to operate.
Click to expand...
The sled will never die! Honestly though, I see a lot of opportunities as the older one man bands begin to retire with less guys wanting to live the bush lifestyle.
 
Roger Roger said:
I think the other thing you're seeing is that as safety demands that operations move to IFR and turbine equipment, and pilots get more difficult and expensive to attract and retain forcing moves to lower frequency with larger aircraft, only larger companies are able to absorb the overhead costs required to operate.
Click to expand...

Well honestly there's no excuse not to any more in most of the state. Even ten years ago sleds with 3 pax flying 15 round trips per day made more sense when you couldn't do any better than the guys going IFR.

The future of real crazy arctic bushrattery probably isn't available in this county any more like it was in the 90s.
 
alaskadrifter said:
The sled will never die! Honestly though, I see a lot of opportunities as the older one man bands begin to retire with less guys wanting to live the bush lifestyle.
Click to expand...
Until another 9-11 happens and every yokel that can scrounge up a flyable sled or Cherokee gets stacks of resumes for $150/14 hour duty day.
 
Roger Roger said:
I think the other thing you're seeing is that as safety demands that operations move to IFR and turbine equipment, and pilots get more difficult and expensive to attract and retain forcing moves to lower frequency with larger aircraft, only larger companies are able to absorb the overhead costs required to operate.
Click to expand...

Though I think the seasonal businesses model will continue to have the most issues. Hiring at minimum experience and then trying to adequately train everyone in a short time before they are turned loose has had some bad results in the last few years. The summer season is being sold an booked well before the pilot hiring starts. Now when push comes to shove in the spring, do you turn down the business or settle on just finding a semi warm body to occupy the pilot seat.

Oh an congrats on being "The One" in Juneau now.. is it Highlander rules with the Wings/Fjord people? They have still to make an official announcement but are selling off office equipment on several of the community buy/sell/trade FB pages.
 
Capt. Chaos said:
Though I think the seasonal businesses model will continue to have the most issues. Hiring at minimum experience and then trying to adequately train everyone in a short time before they are turned loose has had some bad results in the last few years. The summer season is being sold an booked well before the pilot hiring starts. Now when push comes to shove in the spring, do you turn down the business or settle on just finding a semi warm body to occupy the pilot seat.

Oh an congrats on being "The One" in Juneau now.. is it Highlander rules with the Wings/Fjord people? They have still to make an official announcement but are selling off office equipment on several of the community buy/sell/trade FB pages.
Click to expand...
There was nobody left there except The Albatross . What is that 4 operators now?
 
Yute's slob of a C.P. fired a friend of mine in the late 90's for running over a taxi light in deep snow in a 172. The C.P. says "You'll never work in this business again." How fitting that said friend upgrades to 747-400 captain almost the exact day Yute goes away. RIP Yute Air, you were an uninspiring cog in the wheel.
 
Akutan said:
Yute's slob of a C.P. fired a friend of mine in the late 90's for running over a taxi light in deep snow in a 172. The C.P. says "You'll never work in this business again." How fitting that said friend upgrades to 747-400 captain almost the exact day Yute goes away. RIP Yute Air, you were an uninspiring cog in the wheel.
Click to expand...

CPs change so you should probably watch your words.
 
Roger Roger said:
I think the other thing you're seeing is that as safety demands that operations move to IFR and turbine equipment, and pilots get more difficult and expensive to attract and retain forcing moves to lower frequency with larger aircraft, only larger companies are able to absorb the overhead costs required to operate.
Click to expand...

Someone is going to have to write up an explainer for me (not you, and not right now - this is not a demand, unless you're just bored and want to) for what the Alaskanese meanings are of IFR and VFR operations.

I know very little about Alaska flying, and truthfully, most of it is gleaned from reading JC, so I know it's a soda-straw view and incomplete at best. But I'm getting the impression that the very concept of ADM differs up there and that the definitions of VFR and IFR are elastic - determined by the needs of a business rather than aviation safety.

Is that at all accurate? Is there an accepted difference in the way people make go/no-go decisions and in-flight ADM in Alaska vs. the lower 48? Trying to learn something here.
 
Akutan said:
No I never had a girlfriend in the bush. Wow, maybe that's my problem.

As I stated in a previous post, maybe the one you're referring to, they stole the water we used to flush the toilets and wash our hands with in Bethel by draining the entire terminal water supply for deadhead ballast. It was also the little things like jumping with them out of Nome in winter and the F.O. saying, "Geez, this is cool. I've never been to Alaska before." Me: "How'd you get on with this outfit then?" Him: "My mom's friend works in human resources at Alaska."
Click to expand...
Seems like a fairly small price to pay once in a while for a free ride out of the third world on the freedom jet every two weeks.
 
killbilly said:
Someone is going to have to write up an explainer for me (not you, and not right now - this is not a demand, unless you're just bored and want to) for what the Alaskanese meanings are of IFR and VFR operations.

I know very little about Alaska flying, and truthfully, most of it is gleaned from reading JC, so I know it's a soda-straw view and incomplete at best. But I'm getting the impression that the very concept of ADM differs up there and that the definitions of VFR and IFR are elastic - determined by the needs of a business rather than aviation safety.

Is that at all accurate? Is there an accepted difference in the way people make go/no-go decisions and in-flight ADM in Alaska vs. the lower 48? Trying to learn something here.
Click to expand...

It's not as complicated as it would seem. Yute was a "VFR operator" simply because that's all their equipment would allow them to do (207's). The general movement in rural Alaska flying is toward IFR operations thus making mom and pop VFR 135s a thing of the past. That said, many airports still exist that have no instrument approaches and have the expectation of regular scheduled service. It's a slow process.

Perhaps the definitions of VFR and IFR seem elastic to people from the lower 48 is because SVFR is so common. Bethel even has "published" holds for aircraft waiting to come in on a special. Admittedly my experience flying down south is limited, but I can't say that I recall ever hearing anyone pick up a special.

Of course once you're away from the delta airspace or echo surface, you're on your own to determine what the weather is doing and left madly cycling through your MX20 trying to figure out if where you're going is better than where you are or if where you left has since gone on its ass.
 
ShortField said:
It's not as complicated as it would seem. Yute was a "VFR operator" simply because that's all their equipment would allow them to do (207's). The general movement in rural Alaska flying is toward IFR operations thus making mom and pop VFR 135s a thing of the past. That said, many airports still exist that have no instrument approaches and have the expectation of regular scheduled service. It's a slow process.

Perhaps the definitions of VFR and IFR seem elastic to people from the lower 48 is because SVFR is so common. Bethel even has "published" holds for aircraft waiting to come in on a special. Admittedly my experience flying down south is limited, but I can't say that I recall ever hearing anyone pick up a special.

Of course once you're away from the delta airspace or echo surface, you're on your own to determine what the weather is doing and left madly cycling through your MX20 trying to figure out if where you're going is better than where you are or if where you left has since gone on its ass.
Click to expand...

Wrll, all that and "Mexican IFR."
 
ShortField said:
It's not as complicated as it would seem. Yute was a "VFR operator" simply because that's all their equipment would allow them to do (207's). The general movement in rural Alaska flying is toward IFR operations thus making mom and pop VFR 135s a thing of the past. That said, many airports still exist that have no instrument approaches and have the expectation of regular scheduled service. It's a slow process.

Perhaps the definitions of VFR and IFR seem elastic to people from the lower 48 is because SVFR is so common. Bethel even has "published" holds for aircraft waiting to come in on a special. Admittedly my experience flying down south is limited, but I can't say that I recall ever hearing anyone pick up a special.

Of course once you're away from the delta airspace or echo surface, you're on your own to determine what the weather is doing and left madly cycling through your MX20 trying to figure out if where you're going is better than where you are or if where you left has since gone on its ass.
Click to expand...
In my neck of the woods the mom and pop single pilot operators are doing quite well, especially since most of the locals are fed up with Grant's shenanigans.
 
alaskadrifter said:
In my neck of the woods the mom and pop single pilot operators are doing quite well, especially since most of the locals are fed up with Grant's shenanigans.
Click to expand...

"Grant's shenanigans" Do tell. When I was there there was a lot of questionable stuff going on.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top