Cheechako On Wings

About the Book

This is a biographical and sometimes whimsical account of the experiences of a young student pilot, in the developing territory of Alaska. At a time when WWII was over, and flying in Alaska was just beginning to come into its own, every flight was an adventure. The author was privileged to become acquainted with some of the bush pilots who, as the years went by, became famous for pioneering the air routes from Bristol Bay to Umiat.

The story is being told fifty years after the events took place, and is illustrated with many historical photographs of people and places as they were in that slice of time. Many of the chapters are developed from personal pilot flight log book entries, and they describe the life and people, as Alaska was entering into the modern age of aviation.

The art of Arctic flying is gained through painful experience, and this account describes the misadventures and mistakes which the author was lucky enough to survive, and is detailed enough to be instructive and, hopefully, useful to inexperienced pilots who might fly in that great North country someday.

About the Author

Brian Fortier was born in Proctor, Vermont in 1924. After serving overseas in WWII, he went to Alaska to work in Electronic Aids to Air Navigation for the Civil Aeronautics Administration. He returned to Vermont after five years, and finished out his career with the FAA. He is now retired.