7S* RYA Destinations Bush Alaska Founded 1953 | RYA RYAN AIR Company slogan The Tough Get Going. Headquarters Anchorage Fleet size 14 | |
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Key people Wilfred P. Ryan Jr., President Hubs Bethel Airport, Nome Airport, Ralph Wien Memorial Airport | ||
Ryan Air Services is an American cargo-only airline that serves over 70 villages in Bush Alaska out of hubs in Aniak, Bethel, Emmonak, Kotzebue, Nome, St. Mary's, and Unalakleet.
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History
Ryan Air was established in 1953 as Unalakleet Air Taxi by Wilfred Ryan Sr. as a charter airline. In 1960s, the company began handling USPS mail delivery and transportation of schoolteachers for the Bureau of Indian Affairs between communities along the lower Yukon River. In 1977, Wilfred P. Ryan Jr. took over the company after his father died of cancer.
In the 1980s, the company expanded service beyond the Norton Sound and changed their name to Ryan Air. With a new fleet of Beech 1900s and Beech 99s, Ryan Air grew to the largest commuter carrier in Alaska by 1987, serving 85 cities and villages with a fleet of 28 planes. However, a series of 12 accidents, culminating in a fatal crash in November 1987 that killed 18 of the 21 people on board, led the FAA to shut down the airline in January 1988.
In the 1990s, Ryan Air converted to a cargo-only airline and changed their name to Arctic Transportation Services (ATS), adding CASA 212 cargo planes to their fleet. They changed their name back to Ryan Air in 2010.
In mid-May, 2013, Ryan Air announced that they would resume regularly scheduled passenger services out of Aniak, AK using their Cessna 207 aircraft beginning May 16, 2013.
Fleet
As of February 2017, the Ryan Air Services fleet consists of 20 aircraft, including 5 CASA 212-200s, 2 Saab 340s, 1 Pilatus PC-12/45, 1 Cessna 208 and 11Cessna 207s: