Wien Air Alaska was formed from Northern Consolidated Airlines and Wien Alaska Airways. The company was famous for being the first airline in Alaska, and one of the first in the United States. Wien Air Alaska was formed from Northern Consolidated Airlines and Wien Alaska Airways. ... Official language(s) English Capital Juneau Largest city Anchorage Area  Ranked 1st  - Total 663,267 sq mi (1,717,854 km²)  - Width 808 miles (1,300 km)  - Length 1,479 miles (2,380 km)  - % water 13. ...

History

The airline was started in 1927 by Noel Wien in Nome, Alaska, but traces its roots back to Noel's 1924 to 1926 flights out of Fairbanks with Bennett Rodebaugh's Fairbanks Airplane company which was later absorbed into Wien Alaska Airways. Wien Air Alaska at one time flew to more places in the world than any other airline excluding Aeroflot. By the early 1980s their route network extended from Point Barrow and dozens of Alaskan towns all the way down to Phoenix, Oakland, and Denver. Their main bases were in Anchorage and Seattle. Noel Wien (1899–1977) was a pioneer aviator in the U.S. state of Alaska and founder of Wien Air Alaska, Alaskas first airline. ... Nome is a city located on the southern Seward Peninsula coast of Norton Sound in the Nome Census Area, Alaska. ... Nickname: The Golden Heart City Location Coordinates , Government Country  State   Borough United States  Alaska   Fairbanks North Star Incorporated November 10, 1903 Mayor Steve M. Thompson Geographical characteristics Area     City 84. ... Aeroflot Airbus A319 at Berlin Aeroflot — Russian Airlines (Russian:Аэрофлот — Российские авиалинии), or Aeroflot (Аэрофло́т; literally air fleet), is the Russian national airline and the biggest carrier in Russia. ... Point Barrow or Nuvuk, is a headland at the northernmost point of Alaska and of the United States, on the Arctic Ocean, Panoramic view of the tip of point Barrow, Alaska. ... Nickname: Valley of the Sun Location in Maricopa County and the state of Arizona Coordinates: Country United States State Arizona Counties Maricopa Incorporated February 25, 1881 Mayor Phil Gordon (D) Area    - City 1,230. ... Oakland, founded in 1852, is the eighth-largest city in California and the county seat of Alameda County. ... This article refers to the state capital of Colorado. ... The current version of the article or section reads like an advertisement. ... City nickname Emerald City City bird Great Blue Heron City flower Dahlia City mottos The City of Flowers The City of Goodwill City song Seattle, the Peerless City Mayor Greg Nickels County King County Area   - Total   - Land   - Water   - % water 369. ...

Before Wien Air folded in 1985, they were known as the second oldest airline in the U.S.

Aircraft operated

1920s:

• Standard J-1
• Fokker F.III (operated by Noel Wien at the Fairbanks Airplane Company)
• Stearman C3
• Stinson SB-1 "Detroiter" (the 1926 biplane version of the Detroiter)
• Hamilton Metal Plane

1930s:

• Bellanca
• Stinson Model Jr.
• Ford Trimotor
• Fokker Universal

1940s: AviaBellanca Aircraft Corporation is an American aircraft design and manufacturing company. ... The Ford Trimotor, nicknamed The Tin Goose, was a three engine civil transport aircraft first produced in 1926 by Henry Ford and continued until about 1933. ...

• Fairchild Pilgrim
• Bellanca Skyrocket
• Travelair 6000
• Noorduyn Norseman
• Republic Seabee
• Stinson SR-9 "Gull Wing"
• Boeing 247
• Douglas DC-3
• Curtiss C-46
• Cessna 165 Airmaster

1950s: The Noorduyn Norseman is a single-engine bush plane produced from 1935 to 1959, originally by Noorduyn Aircraft Ltd. ... Boeing 247 The Boeing 247 was one of the first modern passenger airliners. ... The Douglas DC-3 is a fixed-wing, propeller-driven aircraft which revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and 1940s, and is generally regarded as one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made (also see Boeing 707 and Boeing 747). ... The Curtiss C-46 Commando was a transport aircraft used by the United States Army Air Force during World War II. Also known to the men who flew them as The Whale. The C-46 served a similar role as its brother the Douglas C-47 Skytrain, but was not... Cessna Aircraft Company, located in Wichita, Kansas, is a manufacturer of general aviation aircraft, from small two-seat, single-engine airplanes to business jets. ...

• Douglas DC-3
• Curtiss C-46
• Noorduyn Norseman
• Cessna 170, 180, 195
• Beech 18

1960s and 1970s Beechcraft 18/C-45 at the National Museum of the United States Air Force Beechcraft 18 on floats The Beechcraft Model 18 was a small six- to 11-place, twin-engine, low-wing, conventional-gear aircraft manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation of Witchita, Kansas. ...

• Cessna 185
• de Havilland Beaver
• Beech 18
• Pilatus Porter
• Douglas DC-4
• Lockheed L-749 Constellation
• de Havilland Twin Otter
• Fairchild C-82
• Douglas DC-3
• Curtis C-46
• Shorts Skyvan
• Fokker F-27
• Boeing 737 (One of the first U.S. operators starting in May of 1967 with aircraft N461GB)

(Wien was the launch customer for Boeings 737-200 Combi passenger-freight aircraft) Cessna 185 (C-FFXO) Skywagon II at Cambridge Bay Airport, Nunavut, Canada The Cessna 185 also know as the Skywagon is a six seat, single engined, general aviation light aircraft. ... The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver is one of the most famous bush planes in the world. ... The Pilatus PC-6 Porter (sometimes nicknamed the Jeep of the air) is a civilian utility aitcraft built by Pilatus Aircraft of Switzerland. ... The designation DC-4 was used by Douglas Aircraft Company when developing the DC-4E as a large, four-engined type to complement its forthcoming DC-3 design. ... President Dwight Eisenhower flew in two Constellations, named Columbine II and Columbine III. The Lockheed Constellation, affectionately known as the “Connie”, was a four-engine propeller-driven airliner built by Lockheed between 1943 and 1958 at its Burbank, California, USA, facility. ... The DHC-6 Twin Otter is the most successful aircraft program in Canadas history. ... 1944 Fairchild Argus III (G-BCBH) Fairchild were an aerospace manufacturing company based at various times in Farmingdale, New York, Hagerstown, Maryland, and San Antonio, Texas. ... SC.7 Skyvan at Oulu Airport, Finland. ... 1944 Fairchild Argus III (G-BCBH) Fairchild were an aerospace manufacturing company based at various times in Farmingdale, New York, Hagerstown, Maryland, and San Antonio, Texas. ... The Boeing 737 is the worlds most popular medium-range, narrowbody commercial passenger jet aircraft. ...

1980s:

• Boeing 737
• Boeing 727
• McDonnell Douglas DC-8 Freighter (contract for UPS)

The Boeing 727 is a large, single-aisle (narrow-body) commercial jet airliner carrying as many as 189 passengers. ...

Name history

• Wien Alaska Airways 1927-1930
• Northern Air Transport 1930
• Wien Alaska Airways 1930-194?
• Wien Alaska Airlines 194?-196?
• Wien Air Alaska 196?-April 1968
• Wien Consolidated April 1968-1974
• Wien Air Alaska 1974 -1984
• Wien Airlines 1985

The airline was purchased in 1981 by the company's current president, Jim J. Flood, who oversaw its liquidation November 23, 1984, earning Flood a sizeable profit and resulting in more than 1500 jobs lost.

External link

• Wien Television Commercials

Sources

• Ira B. Harkey, Noel Wien - Pioneer Alaska Bush Pilot, and discussions in 2005 with Merrill and Richard Wien, sons of the founder.