Danger in the Sky

Robert Campbell Reeve, Glacier Pilot

 

 

Robert Cambell Reeve and his twin brother were born on March 27, 1902; this was even before the Wright Brothers made their first flight. Hubert Reeve, the twin’s father, was the depot agent and telegrapher for the Chicago and Northwestern railroad that passed through Waunakee, Wisconsin. Their mother, Mae, would die when the boys were two, and after a short while their father remarried and they were left to their own devices. 

 

 

It turned out that Bob loved to read, and he was intrigued at the age of 7 when he discovered the Wright Brothers. He studied everything he could find about flying, and decided that the future lay in aviation. By 1917 Reeve was bored with school and wanted to get into the army. Because he was only 15 it took two attempts before he was accepted into the U.S. Army, By the end of World War I he had advanced to the rank of Sergeant but never got to serve outside of the United States. 

 

 

While in the military Reeve saw his first airplane when a flight of JN-4 "Jennies" flew over Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana. Later he was stationed at Camp Custer (now known as Fort Custer) in Battle Creek, Michigan, and for $ 5.00 he got his first airplane ride that lasted all of five minutes! That five minutes changed his life forever. His father encouraged Bob to come home and finish high school, but he was soon off again to San Francisco.

 

 

From there he took a steamship to China, jumping ship in Shanghai where he found a job as a Chinese Maritime Customs Service officer, eventually traveling to Vladivostok. His father’s pleading brought Robert home once more in 1921. Bob buckled down and finished his high school requirements in a mere six months, and then Bob Reeve attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin, but it didn't last long.

 

 

He met three similarly air minded friends there, and they spent all of their time at the local airfield hanging out with barnstormers rather than attend school. All four of them were expelled from college just months before graduation, but the die was cast. His passion for flying ignited, and there was no turning back. 

 

 

Bob travelled to Florida and Texas in search of flight training, and by 1926 had earned both his Commercial Pilots license and aircraft mechanics license. His brother was a flight cadet in the Army, so Bob gave that one more try. But, soon the Army lost it's luster for him, and at the first opportunity he left the Army. 

 

 

In 1928 he was hired by Ford Motor Company to learn to fly the Ford Trimotor at the Ford Flight Training School in Phoenix, Arizona. Upon completion of his training he was sent south to Guayaquil, Ecuador, where a disassembled Trimotor awaited him. On August 1, 1929, he delivered the aircraft to Pangara Airways, a partnership between Pan American Airlines and WR Grace, a shipping company.

 

 

Pan Am offered him a job flying the longest distance mail route in the world, Foreign Mail Route 9, which stretched 1,900 miles between Lima, Peru and Santiago, Chile. The aircraft to be used on this route were the Fairchild 71 and Lockheed Vega. Reeve would also use the Fairchild on the route between Santiago, Chile and Montevideo, Uruguay flying over the Andes at altitudes exceeding 23,000 feet.

 

 

While flying the mail he met several old timers who told him tales of Alaska, its gold and of flying possibilities there. It wasn’t long before Reeve was feeling that pull to move once again. After a minor landing accident involving a Lockheed Vega he was on his way north. There he had an accident when he fell through the ice on a hunting trip, and after hiking four miles back home he suffered a bout of polio.

 

 

After a month in bed he left home, stowed away on a steamship, and headed to Alaska to become a bush pilot. He discovered that there was a lot competition, but he eventually figured out that there was an opportunity for taking equipment and supplies to mines located in the mountains near glaciers. He bought his first airplane, a Fairchild 51.

 

 

The Fairchild 51, a simple, functional aircraft that dominated the "Classic Era" of the 1920's and 1930's in America.

 

 

General Characteristics:

• Crew: One pilot;
• Capacity: Four passengers or 820 pounds of freight;
• Length: 31 feet;
• Wingspan: 44 feet;
• Height: 9 feet;
• Empty weight: 2,160 pounds;
• Gross weight: 3,600 pounds;
• Powerplant: Wright J-5 200 hp engine;
• Maximum speed: 122 mph;
• Range: 700 miles;
• Service ceiling: 11,500 feet.

 

 

Thus Robert Reeve gained the nickname "Glacier Pilot." As his business grew World War II appeared on the horizon. In November 1942, he signed an exclusive contract with the Alaska Communications Service. Bob became the only civilian pilot authorized to fly in combat zones by virtue of this agreement. Reeve and his wife Tilly, along with their four children, moved a final time to Anchorage. During World War II Bob flew the entire Aleutian Chain learning its weather, the islands and the coastlines. As the war wound down Bob developed a plan; he would service the Aleutians with scheduled service. 

 

 

 

On March 24, 1947, Reeve Aluetian Airways was incorporated, and began its weekly scheduled service along the 1,783 mile route of the Aluetian chain of islands. Over the years the airline had a number of aircraft, of which some were Lockheed Electras.

 

 

A map of the routes for Reeve Aleutian Airways in the early days in Alaska.

 

 

Sidenote: 

"On January 20, 1960, I enlisted in the USAF, and after basic training was sent to Syracuse University to learn the Russian language. Upon completion of the program I was transferred to  Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo, Texas in February of 1961. It was there that I learned to fly and earned my Private Pilot license. Upon completion of my training there I was shipped off to Shemya Air Force Base in June of 1962, located on the next to the last island in the chain. My tour of duty there was 365 days."

 

 

Enter James Gibson

 

 

James Gison was born in Portland, Oregon, on April 26, 1929, to his parents John and Gertrude Gibson. Growing up in Portland he attended Jefferson High School which was founded in 1908. Upon graduation Gibson attended the University of Oregon. A year later he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force where he served for 4 years, being discharged in 1952. On May 6, 1950, Gibson married Ms. Doris Allen, and over the years they had two daughters named Kathleen and Karen, and had three grandsons named Brennan, Colin and Matthew.

 

 

Little is known about his early flying days, but we know that in 1957 he moved to Fairbanks, Alaska to pursue a career in flying. He began his career as a bush pilot when he established a bush pilot business in Kenai, Alaska, and was a member of the Kenai Civil Air Patrol for five years. In 1963 he moved to Anchorage, Alaska, and was employed by Reeve Aleutian Airlines for 25 years, retiring as a captain.

 

 

Reeve Aleutian Airways Flight 8

 

 

On June 8th, 1983, Flight 8 departed Cold Bay, Alaska bound for Seattle, Washington, a distance of 1,795 miles over the Pacific Ocean. The aircraft was a Lockheed L-188 Electra with ten passengers aboard and some cargo. Most of the passengers were hunters or anglers. On this date the crew consisted of Captain James Gibson, first officer Gary Lintner, flight engineer Gerald 'Moose' Laurin, along with two flight attendants by the names of Wendy Kroon and Victoria Fredenhagen.

 

 

Reeve Aleutian Airways Lockheed Electra L-188C N1968R c-n 2007 delivered on November 25, 1959.

 

 

On this day the weather was good with no turbulence in the area, and the flight was quite smooth. Shortly after takeoff the crew noticed an unusual vibration somewhere in the aircraft. They continued climbing out over the Pacific Ocean, and because the pilots couldn't figure out what was going on, they sent the flight engineer, Moose Laurin, to check it out. By now the vibration was quite violent, they could feel it with their feet and the glass instruments vibrated. 

 

 

As the aircraft passed 19,000 feet the senior flight attendant, Wendy, noticed the vibrations were increasing, so she went to the cockpit to discuss it with the pilots. Suddenly the vibration intensified, a loud bang was heard, and a rapid decompressioin of the aircraft occured. While there she peered out one of the windows on the right side and immediately saw the propeller on the number four engine depart as it spun away under the fuslage.

 

 

The situation immediately became a catastrophic event. The propeller didn't just fall down into the ocean, it sliced an eight foot hole in the aircraft's belly of the fuselage. In addition to the decompression, it also caused extensive structural damage to the aircraft. Quickly the crew realized that they had reduced control authority over the aircraft, and very limited ability to maneuver the aircraft normally.

 

 

Inside the cockpit the pilots donned their emergency oxygen masks and quickly knew that they needed to descend to 10,000 feet fast, but at the same time they were concerned that the additional speed generated by the dive might cause the aircraft to come apart. With the loss of the right outboard engine power and propeller, the aircraft began a turn to the right. Immediately, the captain realized he could not use the control yoke to regain level flight.

 

 

The first officer then issued a 'mayday' call to the flight dispatcher on the ground, who in turn contacted an aircraft engineer who knew the Electra and could help. The damage had impacted multiple systems, the normal flight characteristics had changed, engine power controls were frozen so there was no way to control the power of the remaining engines. The aircraft was still flyable, but contolling it would require exceptional skill and improvisation.

 

 

The cockpit crew begain figuring out how to maintain control of the aircraft. They found out that the autopilot system could still provide some assistance despite the extensive damage to the aircraft. The were still out over the cold Pacific Ocean and decided to divert to Anchorage which had lots of runway and emergency support crews. As they headed to Anchorage the crew were quickly adapting to the situation, manage power by using a combination of engine shutdowns, landing gear deployments, and careful flight management to control altitude and speed.

 

 

Every phase of the flight required the crew to problem solve as the worked to keep the wounded Electra under control and airborne. As the approached Anchorage the challenges became even greater. Landing a damaged aircraft with disabled controls and limited engine management capability presented enormous risks. Neverthe less, the crew were successful in lining up with the runway and getting the Electra safely on the ground.

 

 

With throttles jammed the crew elected to shut the engines off on touchdown to eliminate residual thrust, and to reduce the landing distance. As they rolled down the runway a tire burst, at the same time the intense braking generated enough heat to ignite the brake fires. Eventually the aircraft departed the runway and came to rest in a ditch. Remarkably, none of the 15 people on board suffered serious injuries.

 

 

Reeve Aleutian Airway Electric crash landing at Anchorage International Airport, Alaska.

 

Wendy later said that "And just as I looked out the window, the engine went and the prop came off ... it's going to kill me. It's going to cut me in two, bit it flew forward and came back and slapped the engine and then went underneath it."

 

 

Because the propeller was lost in the Pacific Ocean and could not be found, investigators had little to go on to determine the cause of this accident. Amazingly, the Electra was repaired and returned to service. Years later it was converted to an aerial firefighting aircraft in Canada, continuing to fly long after the accident.

 

 

Captain James Gibson continued flying for Reeve Aleutian Airway until he retired in 1989 and moved to Vancouver, Washington, where he lived at Fairway Village where he was active in community service.  His hobby was building and flying radio controlled models, and he was a member of the Fern Prarie Modelers. On Jamuary 5, 2010 James Gibson passed away in his home in Vancouveer.

 

 

Robert C. Reeve was named “Alaskan of the Year” in 1972, inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1975, and inducted into the International Aerospace Hall of Fame in 1980. Robert C. Reeve would die in his sleep on August 25, 1980. The Alaska Aviation Heritage Museum inducted Robert C. Reeve into the Alaska Aviation Pioneer Hall of Fame during ceremonies on February 25, 2005. Unfortunately, Reeve Aleutian Airways ceased operations on December 5, 2000, due to financial issues in the early 1990s. 

 

 

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Until next time, keep your eyes safe and focused on what's ahead of you, Hersch!