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Home›Tour›Alaska Helicopter Travel Company Sees 250% Sales Boom This Year

Alaska Helicopter Travel Company Sees 250% Sales Boom This Year

By Johnny Johnson
December 4, 2021
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  • Alaska Helicopter Tours, based in Anchorage, experienced a 250% boom in 2021 compared to 2019.
  • Hiring enough ground staff has been the company’s biggest challenge during the surge in demand.
  • The operator expects a strong 2022 season, with pre-sales already doubling in 2021.
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The pandemic has destroyed the tourism industry in the northernmost US state of Alaska, but is experiencing a rapid recovery with a tourism business more than doubling sales in 2019 this year.

Alaska Helicopter Tours, based in Anchorage, is an airline that takes adventurous guests around the beautiful state, offering aerial views of places like Denali National Park, as well as glacier hikes and dog sledding tours.

Like many other businesses across the country, the operator fell victim to the coronavirus pandemic, having temporarily lost its allowance to serve tourists. However, it was fortunate enough to be able to operate as an essential flying service for the local utility company on behalf of its parent organization, Alpha Aviation.

Following strict health and safety protocols as a public service, Alaska Helicopter Tours obtained a waiver from the State Congress at the end of March 2020 to offer air tours to the inhabitants of Alaska. According to the company’s COO, Jennifer Hanks, who was born and raised in the state, the service has helped keep the business running.

“We could offer the locals something to get out of their homes,” Hanks told Insider. “We were one of the first companies to go live and it was really nice to be able to open our doors to the people of Alaska.”

While the company was able to continue operating during the pandemic, which was a rarity for tour operators, it did not expect a huge increase in travel in 2021. But, in January, it was clear that Alaska Helicopter Tours was in a great year.

“We thought it would be pandemic style with few employees and not many helicopters on the tourism side, but we ended up having the craziest and busiest year ever,” Hanks said. to Insider. “2019 has been our busiest season and we are already two and a half times better than 2021. And, for 2022, our presales are already double what they were this year.”

Hanks explained that the push is coming from people desperate for vacation and finally able to travel again. She said a large portion of their guests were large families, and she believes airlines offering deals on flights have helped people visit the state cheaply.

With soaring sales came challenges, including finding enough manpower and resources to meet demand. Before the pandemic, the company operated a fleet of three helicopters, including two Robinson R44s and one A-Star helicopter, but had to add one of each to handle the surge. The company also plans to further develop the fleet event due to the booming 2022 presales.

Alaska Robinson R44 helicopter tours.

Alaska Robinson R44 helicopter tours.

Alaska Helicopter Tours


While the company’s business is growing, Alaska Helicopter Tours is no stranger to labor shortages. Hanks told Insider that the company’s biggest hurdle during the outbreak was hiring ground staff.

“Like everywhere in the United States, we couldn’t find people because the hiring pool was very small and a lot of people were unemployed,” she explained. “Lots of Alaskan employees are also J1 [international] students, but they couldn’t enter the United States, so we did a lot of local advertising and we settled on Indeed. “

According to Hanks, finding pilots was not a problem because having “time in Alaska” for the flight is a big plus for their resume.

Heading into 2022, Alaska Helicopter Tours is cautious about the new COVID-19 variant Omicron, but it still expects a good season.

“In reality, 2022 sales will be about 30% higher than what we did this year,” Hanks told Insider.


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