Release #: Vol. 84, No. 5
June 01, 2015

The Landing: The Mighty Hercules

In April, First Air announced that it had sold its last Hercules to Alaska-based Lynden Air Cargo. The Lockheed L-100-30 was perfect for transporting heavy, oversized cargo to the far reaches of the Canadian Arctic. Often landing on gravel runways, this was the last civilian-owned Hercules freighter in Canada. In this issue of Air Line Pilot, “The Landing” pays tribute to First Air’s iconic workhorse.

Herculean Effort

» A naming contest for the new airplane was held at Lockheed’s Marietta, Ga., plant in 1954, with the favorite being “Griffin.” However, management overruled the choice, instead selecting Hercules, the strongman of Greek mythology.

» First Air Capt. Anthony Jarvis reports that the First Air Herc could transport “approximately 47,000 pounds depending on stage length and fuel requirements.”

» NWT Air, which First Air acquired in 1997, began Herc operations in 1982.

» The First Air Hercules has been a fixture in recent years at the “Herc Pull,” an annual Yellowknife Airport (YZF) event to raise money for Special Olympics N.W.T.

First Air acquired aircraft C-GHPW through its purchase of NWT Air.

Competing at the Yellowknife “Herc Pull” to see who can pull the airplane 15 feet in the least amount of time.

The Herc taxiing at Cambridge Bay on Victoria Island.

Loading at Goose Lake in Nunavut.

A K-loader delivered by the Herc to Goma, Zaire.

This article is from the June-July 2015 issue of Air Line Pilot magazine, the Official Journal of the Air Line Pilots Association, International—a monthly publication for all ALPA members.

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