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Aleutian Airways to start regular flights between King Salmon and Anchorage on June 1

The new Aleutian Airways sign at the King Salmon airport.
Courtesy of Aleutian Airways
The new Aleutian Airways sign at the King Salmon airport.

Bristol Bay’s busiest time of year is almost here, and thousands of people are expected to arrive in the region to fish and process salmon. Those travelers now have another option to fly between Anchorage and King Salmon. Aleutian Airways will begin flying the new route with a Saab 2000 on Thursday.

The initial schedule includes two round-trip flights from Anchorage to King Salmon daily – one in the morning and one in the mid-afternoon.

In a March news release, President and CEO Wayne Heller called the new route a “next step” for the company’s growth plan in Alaska. Aleutian Airways began commercial flights from Anchorage to Dutch Harbor last fall, and Heller says that the airline wants to bring the “same level of service” to people flying to and from King Salmon.

A quick search on the airline’s website shows one-way tickets in mid-June cost between $200 and $300. Until now, Alaska Airlines was the only company that had regularly scheduled flights between King Salmon and Anchorage.

Get in touch with the author at izzy@kdlg.org or 907-842-2200.

Izzy Ross is the news director at KDLG, the NPR member station in Dillingham. She reports, edits, and hosts stories from around the Bristol Bay region, and collaborates with other radio stations across the state.