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PETROLEUM DIRECTORY: Charter jets save time and trouble Northwestern offers its charter passengers speed, comfort and flexible travel arrangements Alan Bailey Petroleum Directory Contributing Writer
For many people, traveling to some remote location in their personal Learjet may seem a far-fetched idea. But there are many situations where this type of travel can prove both practical and cost effective. Northwestern, an air charter company based in Anchorage, Alaska, provides customized jet transportation for people who need to get to places quickly, conveniently and in comfort.
“Here at Northwestern we not only provide air service as far as getting a person from point A to point B but we do it very professionally and we do it with customer service,” Captain Patrick Murray, Northwestern’s director of marketing, told Petroleum News.
Northwestern is the charter division of Northwestern Arctic Air, an air ambulance service also based in Anchorage. Northwestern Arctic Air began its Anchorage operations in 1998, Murray said.
With three jet aircraft based in Anchorage Northwestern can respond to most transportation requests in and out of Alaska and within the state.
“We’ve got three jets in Anchorage — two Learjets and a (Cessna) Citation,” Murray said.
The Anchorage-based aircraft are equipped for flying in and out of gravel airstrips. And with a team of about 15 pilots the company can dispatch aircraft quickly and on short notice.
Northwestern Arctic Air also provides air ambulance services for Providence Hospital in Anchorage. The air ambulance operation has two dedicated aircraft: a Learjet and a King Air turboprop. The program has carried out medevacs from as far afield as Russia, South America and Indonesia.
Speed is essential.
“When the pager goes off I have to be in the air in less than 50 minutes,” Murray said. “We’re very used to doing things quickly ... we’ve got protocols set up to get us in the air.” Efficient, cost-effective, safe charter Northwestern applies this rapid response to its air charter operations — customers can call the company’s 24-hour phone number to obtain an immediate answer to a transportation need.
“If someone calls up and says ‘hey, what would it cost to go (from Anchorage) to Los Angeles ... we want to be there in five hours’ ... we’ll give them a quick quote and tell them that we can be in the air in an hour to an hour and a half,” Murray said.
As well as benefiting from this type of fast, flexible service, customers can enjoy all of the amenities of a private jet. Northwestern provides comfortable aircraft seating and in-flight items such as food, drinks, newspapers and magazines.
“We feel it’s very important in order for people to get the full atmosphere, to be treated like executives, CEOs,” Murray said. “That’s what we try to provide for customers. We carry their bags on, give them the red-carpet treatment.”
Northwestern caters to business people who need to reach a destination quickly. However, the company serves anyone who wants the convenience and comfort of charter travel. For example, some people use air charter to go on vacation — they’re happy to pay to get to a destination quickly, avoiding the usual airport lines, being wined and dined on the way and avoiding any possibility of lost luggage.
“We have clients who want to go fishing and they’re down in the Lower 48,” Murray said. “We’ve got a trip here in about a week where we’re going to send a Learjet down to Idaho, pick up a bunch of people and fly them back to the Kenai Peninsula.” Custom travel As well as speed and comfort, chartering an aircraft brings flexibility in travel arrangements. The aircraft can make an unscheduled stop, change routes, change destinations or remain with a customer for an overnight trip.
“That’s the nice thing about air charter. When we’re en route ... we have that option,” Murray said. “It’s your airplane — we’re here for you. If you want to go any place, just let us know.”
Although this type of custom flying isn’t cheap, the cost per passenger depends on how many people are on the aircraft — with a full quota of passengers the cost can turn out quite a bit lower than people might expect. And then for business people, where time translates to money, the timesavings may more than offset the charter cost.
As well as carrying passengers, Northwestern can ship items of express freight — items that require immediate delivery. Express air packages have included organ transplants and critical pieces of oilfield equipment, Murray said. Flightseeing In what is perhaps the ultimate in custom jet travel, Northwestern has started offering flightseeing tours.
“We offer flightseeing anywhere,” Murray said. “That’s the beautiful thing about air charter ... if someone wants to go down to Katmai National Park or view McNeil River Falls, we can do that.”
Since it’s possible to reach almost anywhere in Alaska in a single jet flight from Anchorage, this type of flightseeing opens up endless possibilities for visitors with limited time in the state.
“We can get you there really quick and when we get there we put the flaps down, put the landing gear down, whatever to slow us down a bit, so you can actually view it at slower speed,” Murray said. Niche destinations Customers find Northwestern’s charter operations especially valuable when traveling to destinations that lack frequent scheduled airline service. For example, the company has established a niche business flying to some of the more remote islands in the Aleutians.
“It’s not unusual to have flights for five or six (fishing industry) CEOs heading down to places like Dutch Harbor,” Murray said.
Charter flights can also prove the best option for activities such as fishing vessel crew changes, where people need to be at a specific place at a specific time, he said.
The Russian Far East has become another specialty destination for Northwestern — the company has flown to places such as Sakhalin Island, Magadan and Vladivostok.
“We’ve had an influx of calls over the last six months ... saying ‘we need to get to Sakhalin Island — have you taken people out there?’” Murray said.
Northwestern pilots regularly working both air ambulance and charter operations maintain active experience of flying to these niche locations. And that type of experience can prove invaluable in an area like the Aleutians, where strong winds and poor visibility challenge flying skills and judgment. Safety In fact Northwestern places safety at the top of its priority list — all pilots have to establish an appropriate amount of Alaska experience and substantial flight time before commanding an aircraft.
“We’ve got very, very high minimums — like 5,000 hours for a captain,” Murray said.
And the company’s pilots undergo several days of simulator training in Texas twice a year, to brush up their technique and practice dealing with emergency situations.
With a thriving and expanding business, Murray sees a growing need for air charter in Alaska — Northwestern will soon take delivery of a new Cessna jet that can operate out of shorter airstrips than the other aircraft in the company’s fleet.
“We’re getting the calls. We’re getting the flights,” Murray said. “So, if we get to a point where our airplanes are always gone ... we’re just going to have to put more aircraft on our certificate.”
So, it seems that more and more people see the advantages and practicality of chartering a jet.
Editor’s note: Alan Bailey owns Badger Productions in Anchorage, Alaska.
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