Reeve Aleutian Airways Lockheed L-188 Electra II

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The Lockheed L-188 Electra is an American turboprop airliner built by Lockheed. First flown in 1957, it was the first large turboprop airliner built in the United States. The airplane had airfield performance capabilities unmatched by many jet transport aircraft particularly on short runways and high field elevations. The Model 188 Electra is a low-wing cantilever monoplane powered by four wing-mounted Allison 501-D13 turboprops. It has a retractable tricycle landing gear and a conventional tail. It has a cockpit crew of three and can carry 66 to 80 passengers in a mixed-class arrangement. When jet airliners began replacing turboprops, many of the Electra’s were modified into freighters. To this day, there are Electra’s still being used in various roles well into the 21st century.

Robert Campbell Reeve (March 27, 1902 – August 25, 1980) was an American pilot, who was the founder of Reeve Aleutian Airways was its president until his death in 1980. On March 24, 1947, Reeve Aleutian Airways was incorporated and headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska. The company was running scheduled and charter services all over Alaska, despite not having a formal CAA certificate. The late 1960s saw the emergence of the Lockheed L-188 Electra turboprop airliner, which was to be backbone of Reeve Aleutian’s business until Boeing 727-100 jets joined the fleet year later. The first was purchased in February of 1968 and with the acquisition of the Electra’s the DC-6s were phased out of passenger service.

Reeve Aleutian ceased operations on December 5, 2000 due to increased competition and high fuel prices. At the end, only one Lockheed Electra and one Boeing 727 jetliner were still in service.
Reeve Aleutian Airlines used the Lockheed L-188 Electra II N1968R to fly founder Robert Reeve from Anchorage, Alaska to Albuquerque, New Mexico. He was flown nonstop from Anchorage to Albuquerque to receive treatment for a severe back injury. He was a friend of Dr. Randy Lovelace and a member emeritus of the Board of Directors of the Lovelace Foundation. The treatment was successful and Mr. Reeve and family returned to Anchorage. This flight on January 18, 1978 held the record as the longest nonstop medical flight to Albuquerque. A photo of the Electra II N1968R at the Albuquerque Sunport is shown below.

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