@ Anchorage, AK
May 2023
I always welcome the opportunity to photograph the colorful aircraft of Rust’s Flying Service moored at Lake Hood. Lake Hood’s oldest and largest seaplane operator, Rust’s was founded in 1963 by retired Air Force Colonel and WWII vet Henry “Hank” Rust. The types of flights offered by Rust’s range from hunting and fishing to flightseeing tours. Turbine Otters are among the four aircraft types operated by Rust’s, wearing skis in the winter and floats for the summer season. First flown in 1953, 466 were built before production ended in 1967. Today, about 165 Otters are still flying, mostly in Canada and Alaska.