Sealand Aviation Blog

Alaska Door #1 revisited.

16 Years after it was designed and built, the first Alaska Door is still in active use.  Back in 1995, Tim Laporte of Iliamna Air Taxi came to us, stretched his arms out and said

"I want a cargo door this big".  Tim's company has the mail run in Iliamna Alaska.  In Alaska it was cheaper to mail bales of hay than to ship them, and Tim was getting frustrated trying to get bales of hay into the baggage door in his Beaver.

Ever the optimist, Bill replied that Sealand could create a big baggage door.  Bob wasn't so sure, but as he thought about it and sketched it out, he became more enthusiastic.  Bill and Bob consulted with Dick Hiscocks, one of the original designers of the Beaver.  Dick approved the design, admitting that he wished he'd thought of it, and the rest is history.

Check out Alaska Door #1 in this article from the Cordoba Times a few days ago.   http://www.thecordovatimes.com/article/1110in_rural_communities_postal_delivery_varies

 And, if you are flying one of the other 156 Beavers with Alaska Doors, everytime you load anything in your Beaver, thank Tim!

Picture of N 68088 and Carl Jensen courtesy Tim and Nancy Laporte

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