This spectacular Otter was the first that I shot on our July 1990 trip to Alaska, having arrived very late the previous evening. It was taken at 07.00 on the brightest and stillest of mornings at Lake Hood, Anchorage, Alaska. I can hear it yet, chugging round the corner towards us from the Bush Pilots Air Service base, where I also shot one of their silver Beavers in similar light. The background, as you can see, is dominated by the adjacent Anchorage International Airport control tower which, unusually, also regulates traffic on the very busy Lake Hood / Lake Spennard

Looking like a quite time in front of West Coast Air Services hangar, there were a lot of things happening behind the scenes for this Otter. In previous owner Trans North Turbo Air colors, the aircraft was registered to Tyee Airways in April 1979. Pictured after West Coast took over Tyee, Air BC would take over West Coast before the year was out. Tyee's owner sued to keep his airline operating separately, but C-FSUB would be sold to Air North in June 1980 to fly in the Yukon.

This DHC-3 Otter was delivered in May 1960 to the US Army and flew in the US and Vietnam as 59-2224 until damaged in May 1969. Shipped back to the US, it was rebuilt by Harold J. Hansen in Seattle (BFI) in the early 1970s. After flying in Alaska, Canada and Alaska again, it rebuilt as a Vazar DHC-3T Turbo Otter and sold to Whistler Air in 1999. Mike Quinn founded the airline in 1985 and established a floating base on Green Lake in the resort town of Whistler in 1994. In Dec. 2002-Jan 2003 it flew tourists to the South Pole in Antarctica. Harbour Air bought Whistler Air and C-GEND in May 2012.

For once without floats, awaiting a propeller also!

Sold to de Havilland Canada as ZK-CFH before being exported to Canada as CF-PNV. Photo from: RNZAF/Air Force Museum of New Zealand

This U-1A is painted in high visibility markings. This was one of the last Otters operated by the US Army.

Photographed at Air Nootka's base

Delivered to the RCAF as 9425 in December 1960 and sold onto the civil market in 1964 as CF-BCG following an accident the previous year. Operated by the Govt of British Colombia and later Burrard Air before being sold in the US as N666SA in June 1986. Returned to Canada as C-FBCG in April 1988 and written off in May 1990 taking off from Pelly Crossing 175 ml NW of Whitehorse.

Trans-Provincial Airlines was bought by the Jim Pattison Group (owner of Air West) in 1979. When six coastal carriers merged to form Air BC in 1980, Trans-Provincial kept it's name and operated separately out of Prince Rupert, BC. In 1987, Trans-Provincial and Powell Air merged to form Pacific Coastal Airlines. C-FUJM went to the USA as N67KA in 1997. A year later the aircraft had a Vazar Turbine conversion and was flying in Alaska registered N959PA until 2021.

From a cancelled order, Philippine Air Lines took delivery of PI-C54 on August 24, 1956. Lambair bought in 1968 and the aircraft moved to British Colombia in 1969, flying with several small coastal airlines. Pictured with Gynn Bay Logging Ltd, trading as Western Straits Air, it was converted to a Vazar Turbine Otter in 1990 for Central Mountain Air. Last with Air Tindi from 1993, the it crashed taking of from Yellowknife Seaplane base on June 24, 2005. Loaded with the center of gravity too far aft, the aircraft pitched up and stalled, passengers and crew escaped the wreckage.

Departing Grand Harbour past USS Donald Cook (DDG75).

Ex-C-FHAH

Taxiing out at Malta Freeport for its short hop to Valletta Grand Harbour after being fitted with floats. Aircraft was used for Malta - Gozo air service and sightseeing flights. Later became 9H-AFA.

Seen in the latest livery.