AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 26

WAYPOINTS

BY THOMAS B. HAINES
EDITOR IN CHIEF

General aviation makes it possible

With the retractable skis extended below the wheels, Babcock expertly brought the 55-year-old de Havilland up the Kahiltna Glacier and plunked it carefully onto the deep snow, adding power at touchdown to swing it around for a later downglacier departure. We piled out, anxious to take in the view from 7,200 feet msl, enjoying the bright blue skies and crisp air. The snow boots provided by K2 Aviation proved helpful as we trudged through several inches of new snow. With the Otter in the foreground and Denali in the background, it making it appear even more majestic among nearby competing mountains, Mount Foraker and Mount became clear to me how important general aviation Editor in Chief Thomas B. Haines Hunter. From our 11,500-foot perch, we could see is to the economy of Alaska. celebrated his climbers trudging through snow, lugging plastic With tourism among the top industries in the fiftieth birthday forty-ninth state, GA aircraft play an important sleds loaded with gear. They will spend as many as in the forty-ninth three weeks trekking from the base camp at 7,200 role in providing access to remote locations. People state. feet to the summit and back, stopping at ever-higher from around the world come to climb Denali, others camps to allow their bodies to acclimate to the thinlike us just to enjoy the majesty from some lower ning atmosphere. perspective. General aviation makes that possible. But it’s not For us, the Otter made quick work of the trip—although at about just tourism. During my few days in Alaska to speak to our altitude, we were little more than halfway up the 20,320-foot the Alaska Airmen’s Association at its annual trade show and mountain. Piloted by K2 Aviation’s Jeff Babcock, the fully loaded convention, I came to respect and appreciate the versatility nine-passenger Otter easily snaked its way among mountain in general aviation for the many varied missions necessary to peaks as we traversed the area around Denali, the Ruth, North support residents spread across remote communities. C–46 Fork, and other glaciers looking like wide, twisting highways Commandos and legendary Douglas DC–3s still ply the skies, climbing to and fro up the mountainsides. We circled once high continuously moving large amounts of supplies to communities over the Don Sheldon Amphitheater, named for the man who accessible only by air. Airports in Alaska aren’t a nice-to-have, pioneered flightseeing and aircraft access to the Denali region. they are a necessity. Every community has at least a small gravel We headed down the Kahiltna Glacier and Babcock pointed strip, which often forms the hub of the town the way a railroad to the left. “There’s our landing site.” It looked like every other station or river dock did in pioneer towns of the West. Individuals own and operate airplanes the way many in the snow-covered valley, but as we descended, I started to make out the tracks from other skiplanes, and then the tents and equip- Lower 48 own pickup trucks. When asked, pilots in Alaska don’t ment that make up the Kahiltna Base Camp. There, K2 and other tell you what kind of airplane they own, they also include the tour operators pay a full-time coordinator for the climbing sea- landing gear of choice for the season. “I have a Cessna 185 on son to assist climbers as they prepare for the ascent. floats.” “My Super Cub is on skis, but I’m about to switch to tundra tires.” “I’m about to swap the skis on my Maule for wheels.” There’s an entire maintenance infrastructure in the state set up just to help owners switch from one landing-gear system to another—and to do so quickly as the seasons change. Although this trip was my second to Alaska, it was my first to really interact with local pilots. I came away impressed by their safety culture. Some pilots there (as everywhere) have a reputation for daredevil approaches to aviation; however, most seem to approach flying with great care, taking their responsibilities as aviators very seriously. Email the author at thomas.haines@aopa.org; follow on twitter. com/tomhaines29.
The author (left) with AOPA Alaska Regional Representative Tom George; Adam White, president of the Alaska Airmen’s Association; and Jeannie and Mike Sullivan, AOPA Northwest Regional Representative with K2 Aviation’s Turbine Otter at the Kahiltna Base Camp.

he majesty of Denali’s north slope filled the Turbine Otter’s windscreen. Thin, wispy clouds obscured the summit of North America’s highest peak,

AOPA PILOT •

26 • JULY 2011

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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011

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