Charter operators provide clients access to remote areas.

• Author: Orr, Vanessa
• Position: TRANSPORTATION

Over the last few months, American Fast Freight has been moving some unusual freight to the bush through their Fairbanks terminal. Using their connections via barge and air freight, they've been able to move some oversized and unusual trailer mounted truck heaters to the North Slope. These heaters were moved originally via their freight terminal in Fife, Washington. The heaters are used typically in the construction industry or for remote heating needs and can be pulled behind a pickup truck and used on location to heat everything from a remote shop to a newly built warehouse.

Places like Barrow, Wainwright, Kaktovik, and Point Lay are all benefiting from this new equipment delivered by American Fast Freight. In order to get this unique equipment to these bush communities and to comply with door-lift restrictions, American Fast Freight had to work with the equipment vendor to provide the freight disassembled at the vendor's location and moved via multiple pieces onto the airplanes that American Fast Freight had chartered. Once the heaters reached their destinations, they were reassembled on location and were ready to be put to work.

These unique challenges and others are tackled every day by the AFF Logistics division and their knowledgeable transportation consultants who work directly with vendors and consignees to figure out the best solutions for delivering goods to bush communities like those on the North Slope.

Looking at a map of Alaska it may seem impossible to transport people and goods to all the remote destinations. The fact is there are a quite a number of charter operators available every day. American Fast Freight, Alaska Marine Lines, Lynden Air Cargo, Everts Air, and Ravn Alaska are just a few of the many companies operating in Alaska that provide access solutions to seemingly inaccessible locations.

Alaska Marine Lines

"Typically, our charters go to remote areas where there is no regular maritime service," explains Dave Curtis, vice president, Alaska Marine Lines. "Either that, or we're called on to haul a large quantity of goods that a full barge charter can transport better than piecemealing it on a regular maritime service." Alaska Marine Lines carries a variety of different cargos, ranging from bulk goods that get loaded directly to the deck, like gravel, salt, or full loads of limestone, to construction materials and machinery. The company also transports oil drilling rigs, which, depending on their size, can make up a complete barge load or travel in conjunction with other materials.

"In some cases, companies need a specific, dedicated vessel to haul goods that will not fit in with containerized freight," explains Curtis. "For example, we recently hauled a load of very large, concrete bridge girders that weighed 150,000 pounds each and were 150 feet long. While these...