Alaska Coastal Airlines was an airline in the United States. It was formed in 1939 as a result of the merger of Alaska Air Transport and

Marine Airways Alaska Coastal Airlines was an airline in the United States. It was formed in 1939 as a result of the merger of Alaska Air Transport and Marine Airways. On April 1, 1962, Alaska Coastal Airlines merged with Ellis Air Lines, trading for a while ...

. On April 1, 1962, Alaska Coastal Airlines merged with Ellis Air Lines, trading for a while as Alaska Coastal-Ellis Airlines. Alaska Coastal Airlines was taken over by

Alaska Airlines Alaska Airlines is a major American airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, within the Seattle metropolitan area. It is the fifth-largest airline in North America when measured by scheduled passengers carried, as of 2024. Alaska, togethe ...

in April 1968.Alaska Coastal Airlines
timetables.

History

Alaska Air Transport was formed by Sheldon Bruce "Shell" Simmons (October 8, 1908 – November 16, 1994)library
Shell's biography at

Juneau Juneau ( ; ), officially the City and Borough of Juneau, is the capital of the U.S. state of Alaska, located along the Gastineau Channel and the Alaskan panhandle. Juneau was named the capital of Alaska in 1906, when the government of wha ...

in the summer of 1935 with one Stinson SM-2AC aircraft named ''Patco''. Alaska Air Transport bought out Irving Airways in September 1936. Irving Airways had been started by Wilbur Irving at Juneau in the spring of 1936. Marine Airways was formed by Alex Holden, Jim Davis and M E Monagle in Juneau in July 1936. Holden bought a

Bellanca CH-300 The Bellanca CH-300 Pacemaker was a six-seat utility aircraft, built primarily in the United States in the 1920s and 1930s. It was a development of the Bellanca CH-200, fitted with a more powerful engine and, like the CH-200, soon became renowned ...

Pacemaker NC196N in August 1936. In 1938, Simmons used Bellanca NC47M in the rescue of survivors of the ''Patterson'', an oceangoing freighter which had run aground at Cape Fairweather, 150 miles northwest of Juneau.Findarticles.com
/ref> In 1939, Simmons and Holden joined forces, forming Alaskan Coastal Airways. Ellis Air Lines was formed in

Ketchikan Ketchikan ( ; ) is a city in and the borough seat of the Ketchikan Gateway Borough on Revillagigedo Island of Alaska. It is the state's southeasternmost major settlement. Downtown Ketchikan is a National Historic Landmark District. With a po ...

in 1936 by Robert Edmund "Bob" Ellis (January 2, 1903 – May 8, 1994). At the time of the merger his fleet consisted of ten

Grumman G-21 Goose The Grumman G-21 Goose is an amphibious aircraft, amphibious flying boat designed by Grumman to serve as an eight-seat "commuter" aircraft for businessmen in the Long Island area. The Goose was Grumman's first monoplane to fly, its first twin-en ...

amphibian aircraft An amphibious aircraft, or amphibian, is an aircraft that can take off and land on both solid ground and water. These aircraft are typically fixed-wing, though amphibious helicopters do exist as well. Fixed-wing amphibious aircraft are seap ...

. In 1945, Simmons went to

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, BC, and purchased a

, formerly in the service of the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

Findarticles.com
/ref> On one occasion in the late 1960s, a woman had a baby in flight between Gustavus and Juneau.Findarticles.com
/ref> Alaska Island Airways was acquired by Alaska Coastal Airlines in 1954.

Destinations

Alaska

Angoon Angoon (sometimes formerly spelled Angun, ) is a city on Admiralty Island, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 572; by the 2010 census the population had declined to 459. For statistical purposes, it is in the Hoonah- ...

, Annette, Baranof, Cape Pole, Chatham,

Craig Craig may refer to: People and fictional characters *Craig (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters * Craig (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Clan Craig, a Scottish clan Places United States ...

, Duncan Canal,

Edna Bay Edna Bay is a city on Kosciusko Island in the unorganized borough, and for census purposes in the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. The community was officially incorporated on October 13, 2014, and has a populati ...

Elfin Cove Elfin Cove (Lingít: ''X̱’óot’k’'') is a census-designated place (CDP) near the northwestern corner of Chichagof Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska, United States. The population was 20 at the 2010 census, down from 32 at the 2 ...

Excursion Inlet Excursion Inlet (Tlingit language, Lingít: ''Ḵuyeiḵ’ L’e.aan'') is a census-designated place (CDP) in Haines Borough, Alaska, Haines Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. The population was 40 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census ...

, Funter, Gustavus, Haines, Hawk Inlet, Hollis,

Hoonah Hoonah ( or ''Gaaw Yat’aḵ Aan'') is a largely Tlingit community on Chichagof Island, located in Alaska's panhandle in the southeast region of the state. It is west of Juneau, across the Alaskan Inside Passage. Hoonah is the only first- ...

Hydaburg Hydaburg ( ) (''Higdáa G̱ándlaay'' in Haida) is a first-class city in the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, in the U.S. state of Alaska. The population was 382 at the 2000 census and 376 as of the 2010 census. The name "Hydaburg" r ...

Kake KAKE (channel 10) is a television station in Wichita, Kansas, United States, affiliated with ABC and owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group. The station's studios are located on West Street in northwestern Wichita, and its transmitter is located i ...

Kasaan Kasaan (; ) is a city in the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. The population was 49 at the 2010 census, up from 39 in 2000. The name "Kasaan" comes from Tlingit , meaning "pretty town". History Kasaan is one of ...

, Klawock,

Pelican Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before ...

, Petersburg, Port Alexander, Port Armstrong, Point Baker,

Port Walter Port Walter is located on the southeastern side of Baranof Island in Sitka City and Borough, Alaska. It is made up of two parts: Little Port Walter and Big Port Walter. Little Port Walter was the home of a herring saltery during the turn on the ...

, Rogers Point, Saginaw Bay,

Sitka Sitka (; ) is a unified city-borough in the southeast portion of the U.S. state of Alaska. It was under Russian rule from 1799 to 1867. The city is situated on the west side of Baranof Island and the south half of Chichagof Island in the Al ...

Skagway The Municipality and Borough of Skagway is a borough in Alaska on the Alaska Panhandle. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,240, up from 968 in 2010. The population doubles in the summer tourist season in order to deal with the large ...

, Steamboat Bay, Taku Lodge, Tenakee, Thorne Bay, Todd, Tokeen. Washington Bay, Wrangell.

British Columbia

Prince Rupert Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 ( O.S.) 7 December 1619 (N.S.)– 29 November 1682 (O.S.) December 1682 (N.S) was an English-German army officer, admiral, scientist, and colonial governor. He first rose to ...

, Tulsequah.

Accidents

* 1948 - Kingbird NC622V written off at Tulsequah, BC. * November 14, 1952 - Vega NC49M destroyed by fire at Sitka.DMAirfield.com
Full history of NC49M * January 5, 1958 - Vega NC47M written off near Tanakee. Pilot killed, two passengers injured. * January 20, 1964 - Goose N79914 accident at Petersburg.NTSB
Accident report * October 2, 1964 - Catalina N4936V written off at Otter Lake, flight attendant killed.
N4936V accident details
N4936V accident details * August 21, 1966 - Goose N88820 written off near Juneau. Nine killed. * August 30, 1967 - Goose N74588 accident at Prince Rupert, Canada.NTSB
Accident report

Fleet

* Aeronca PC-3 NC16250 bought new from Aeronca 1 May 36 and sold after two accidents in Juneau and subsequent repairs on 30 Sep 39 to Mary Joyce of Taku Lodge, cancelled in CAA records 4 Aug 48 after letter from Miss Joyce that it was unlikely to fly again (Source; FAA file for NC16250) *

Bellanca CH-300 Pacemaker The Bellanca CH-300 Pacemaker was a six-seat utility aircraft, built primarily in the United States in the 1920s and 1930s. It was a development of the Bellanca CH-200, fitted with a more powerful engine and, like the CH-200, soon became renowned ...

- one operated now preserved in the National Aviation Museum,

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada.Findarticles.com
/ref>
Alaska Airlines Fleet List

2009-10-25. *

Cessna 180 The Cessna 180 Skywagon is a four- or six-seat, fixed conventional gear general aviation airplane which was produced between 1953 and 1981. Though the design is no longer in production, many of these aircraft are still in use as personal airc ...

* Cessna 185D - one operatedGeocities
Alaska Coastal-Ellis Airlines Fleet article & photos

2009-10-25. * Convair 240-5 - one operatedxs4all.com
Convair 240 production list.
Complete history of N196N *

Consolidated PBY Catalina The Consolidated Model 28, more commonly known as the PBY Catalina (U.S. Navy designation), is a flying boat and amphibious aircraft designed by Consolidated Aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s. In U.S. Army service, it was designated as the OA- ...

- five operated Findarticles.com
N2763A history * Curtiss Kingbird D-3 - one operated *

Fairchild 24 The Fairchild Model 24, also called the Fairchild Model 24 Argus and UC-61 Forwarder, is a four-seat, single-engine monoplane light transport aircraft designed by the Fairchild Aviation Corporation in the 1930s. It was adopted by the United Sta ...

- one operated * Howard DGA *

- 24 operatedWidaguy
Goose webpage including aircraft converted to turboprop power ("Turbo-Goose") *

Lockheed Vega The Lockheed Vega is an American five- to seven-seat high-wing monoplane airliner built by the Lockheed Corporation starting in 1927. It became famous for its use by a number of record-breaking pilots who were attracted to its high speed and lo ...

- two operatedFindarticles.com
/ref>Findarticles.com
/ref> * Piper J-3C-65 Cub - one operated in 1948Alaska.edu
Photo of NC71097
history of N71097 * Stinson SM2A - one operated *

Waco Waco ( ) is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a U.S. census estimated 2024 population of 146,608, making i ...

References

External links

Photo
of CF-ATN (NC196N) in Canada National Aviation Museum.

of CF-ATN (NC196N) in Canada National Aviation Museum.

of NC196N at Juneau in 1939.
Video documentary about Simmons
{{Airlines of the United States, state=collapsed 1939 establishments in Alaska 1968 disestablishments in Alaska Airlines disestablished in 1968 Airlines established in 1939 Airlines based in Alaska Defunct airlines of the United States