Ravn Alaska restarts operations under new owners

US's Northern Pacific Airways reveals next-gen fleet plans

ASL Aviation Holdings signs LOI for 10 hydrogen-powered ATRs

ASL Aviation Holdings has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with Universal Hydrogen to acquire up to ten conversion kits to use hydrogen as a fuel for its ATR72 freighters. The Irish holding is poised to become the launch cargo customer for the new propulsion system.

It has also agreed to provide one of its aircraft as a testbed and certification platform to develop the kits. The agreement further includes the long-term contract for the supply of hydrogen fuel for the carrier after the induction of the aircraft.

"In ASL, we are committed to being a first-mover in the introduction of new emissions reduction technology in our current fleet, and hydrogen has a significant role to play with aircraft such as the ATR 72. Aviation cannot wait to act for a decade or more before new aircraft types become available, and by working with Universal Hydrogen, we can create a bridge to new aircraft that will allow us to immediately reduce our carbon footprint," Chief Executive of ASL Aviation Holdings Dave Andrew said.

According to the...

Ravn Alaska begins Dash 8-300 ops to Dutch Harbor

Just over a month after taking delivery of its first DHC-8-300, Ravn Alaska (7H, Anchorage Ted Stevens) has now deployed the type into revenue service on its notoriously challenging Anchorage Ted Stevens- Dutch Harbor route.

N151RA (msn 395) operated the route for the first time on September 13, 2021. While the Q300 is scheduled to run flights to Dutch Harbor daily, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows that some of the rotations continue to be operated by DHC-8-100s.

The Alaskan carrier took delivery of the Dash 8-300 in early August and deployed it on a number of proving flights in early September 2021.

Operations to Dutch Harbor, an outpost in the Aleutian Islands, are considered challenging due to frequent extreme weather at the destination, the scarcity of alternative airports, and its remoteness for small turboprop aircraft - the only ones able to land at the airport there. While the scheduled flight time of 3:10 hours for the Dash 8-300 is already significant for a turboprop, diversions and returns to Anchorage are not...

US's Northern Pacific Airways secures first six B757-200s

FLOAT Alaska LLC has secured its first six B757-200s for its forthcoming long-haul division Northern Pacific Airways and hopes to take delivery of the first of these aircraft in December 2021.

The holding company plans to buy all six aircraft from AerSale (United States of America), Chief Executive Rob McKinney explained to Simple Flying. The first of them will be N206UW (msn 27808), a 26.5-year-old aircraft retired by its last operator, American Airlines, in January 2020 and currently in storage at Roswell airport. The aircraft will undergo a C-Check with Certified Aviation Services LLC at San Bernardino airport and will deliver to Anchorage Ted Stevens by the end of the year, re-registered as N627NP. The other five already secured aircraft will also be ex-American Airlines units. According to the ch-aviation fleets ownership module, AerSale currently owns sixteen B757-200s, of which 14 are ex-American Airlines.

McKinney said the holding is in talks with lessors and traders to secure more aircraft to reach its initial fleet size goal of twelve B757s...