72 AIRLINER WORLD APRIL 2018
side road network, but it is also cut off
from the airport, which lies on a small
island opposite. As a result, all passen-
gers must catch a boat from the airport
to the town.
Another interesting aspect is that the
runway is on a raised platform, and the
taxiways at either end drop down 30ft
(9.1m) from runway
elevation to the terminal.
Ketchikan’s runway is almost 7,546ft
(2,300m), but the slope is still consid-
erable, and when on the runway you
can see only the tail fins of taxiing/
approaching 737s, almost like a
comedic homage to the movies Jaws
and Airplane.
Ketchikan was the last stop in Alaska,
and while departing on the southeast-
erly facing Runway 11, a de Havilland
Canada Beaver flew downwind from
the parallel water runway.
The Final Leg
The passengers settled in for the 1hr
36min flight to Seattle and on reaching
a more traditional cruising height a full
in-flight service was provided, with
soft drinks, tea, coffee, snacks, and the
chance to purchase premium drinks
or food.
Most of the time in the air was spent
following the Canadian coastline
and as the flight crossed over the
border into US airspace, starting the
descent in the twilight, Mount Rainier
came into view, a sight synonymous
with Seattle.
As this was the longest sector of the
journey, the cabin crew had time to talk
to some of the passengers and
were interested to hear about
enthusiasts wanting to fly the milk
run. In a bizarre coincidence, one
of the crew members was from my
home town and I was offered extra
free drinks on condition of accepting a
‘selfie’ with the crew in the galley.
The 737 arrived into a busy Seattle
Tacoma International Airport and
parked at one of the far corners of a
satellite terminal where it would remain
overnight, ready for another milk run
early the next morning.Replacing a Classic
With a growing fleet of modern
737s and the withdrawal of 737-400
passenger aircraft, Alaska Airlines has
since replaced its five combi classics
with dedicated -700 freighters.
The -700F offers a much better range
in addition to a large increase in cargocapacity. There is even a suggestion
the aircraft may operate southbound
from Seattle on longer cargo routes.
Last summer the first Boeing 737-
700BDSF, N627AS (c/n 30794), was
converted and ferried from Bedek in
Tel Aviv, via Belfast to the US. Two
more have since been converted and
rejoined the fleet.
While the new freighters transport
supplies to the remote communities,
passengers are flown using standard
737-700s.
October 18, known locally as Alaska
Day, was the last day of operation for
the 737-400 combi fleet.
While -400 combis still fly in
neighbouring Canada, often to even
more remote locations, Alaska Airlines’
operation can probably be regarded as
the last true classic milk run on one of
the last classic jet aircraft types.The sun sets on Mount
Rainier and Seattle at
the end of the journey
south.While cargo can be
transported by ship, the
distances they must
cover, plus the extreme
variations in weather,
mean it is much quicker
to move it by air.
AVIATION IMAGE NE T WORK/
BAILEY