Robert Campbell Reeve

Robert Campbell Reeve (March 27, 1902 – August 25, 1980) was an American pilot, who was the founder of Reeve Aleutian Airways. He was the Republican nominee for the 1952 House election against incumbent Bob Bartlett.

Childhood Reeve was born in Waunakee, Wisconsin, on March 27, 1902. He was one of twins, his brother was Richard. Their parents were Hubert and Mae Reeve. Mae died in 1904, and their father remarried, leaving the boys to fend for themselves. Bob and Richard went their separate ways early in life. Reeve was fascinated by aviation from an early age, and studied all he could on the subject. He enlisted in the US Army aged 15 in 1917. Discharged from the Army at the end of the war, Reeve had reached the rank of sergeant. He wanted to re-enlist, but his father was against this so Reeve returned to school, but dropped out after a few months and went to San Francisco. From there he got passage as an ordinary seaman to Shanghai, where he took a job in the Chinese Maritime Customs Service, serving on the Yangtze and Taku rivers. In 1921, Reeve was working in Vladivostok, USSR, but returned home as a result of his father's pleading.

Reeve finished high school, and then entered the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1922, his brother already being there. A picture of the aviator Carl Ben Eielson was on the wall at the fraternity house, this inspired Reeve, George Gardner, Monk MacKinnon and Ora McMurray to skip classes to spend time at Madison airfield, where Cash Chamberlain had a Curtiss Jenny. Six months short of graduation, all four were expelled from the university. This pushed them further into aviation, with Gardner and MacKinnon becoming president and vice-president respectively of Northwest Airlines.

Alaska Reeve's move to Alaska came as the result of unrelated incidents. He had met a Klondike prospector, Swiftwater Bill, in Chile, who had told him of the Gold Rush thirty years earlier. He had also talked to Eddie Craig, a mining engineer at the Kennicott Copper Mine in Alaska in the early 1900s. These stories, and the idea that there was new country to conquer pulled Reeve north. He returned home to Wisconsin, where he suffered a slight attack of polio, which affected one of his legs slightly.

Reeve worked for a month at $1 an hour repairing the plane, and then leased the plane from Meals at $10 an hour. Having created a landing strip, Reeve was in business. His first charter was to Middleton Island, where the beach looked fine to land on, but the aircraft sank up to its wheels in the soft sand. An old block and tackle was found and used to rescue the aircraft from the incoming tide. Reeve managed to take off, and attempted to fly back to Valdez, but was forced to land at Seward owing to a storm. When he eventually got back to Valdez his tanks were almost empty, and he hadn't earned a cent. Reeve said this trip was worth $1,000 in experience. Reeve quickly learnt that the bush pilot's biggest worry was paying for gas, which could be $0.25 a gallon in one place, and $1.50 in another.

The first to be built was the airfield at Northway, east of Fairbanks. The contractors were the Morrison-Knudsen company (M-K). Supplies were trucked via the Richardson Highway and a summer trail to the Nasbena Mines, 60 miles from the airfield site, and then flown by Reeve to Northway, where an airstrip had been hacked out of the woods. Some items had to be cut into two or three pieces and re-welded at the destination as they were too big or heavy for the Fairchild.

Reeve's thoughts turned to post-war activities. He knew he would need bigger, faster planes and thought his best hope would be to pick an area that no one else wanted. Reeve bought a hardware store on Fourth Avenue, Anchorage. An old friend, Carl Whitham came to Anchorage, and they formed a partnership to develop some of Whitham's old prospects. Whitham died of cancer in the spring and Reeve's prospecting days were over.

In 1980, Reeve was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.

Personal life Bob and Tilly Reeve had five children: Richard, Roberta, Janice, David, and Whitham. Richard became President of Reeve Aleutian upon the death of his father, Janice remained as a vice president of the airline, Roberta married famed bush pilot Don Sheldon, Whitham formed his own engineering business, and David became Senior Vice President of Midwest Airlines and President/CEO of Skyway Airlines in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Aircraft Reeve's aircraft included:

Boeing 80A NC224M c/n 1082. Ex Boeing Air Transport (United Air Lines). Rebuilt as an 80A-1 in 1930. To Monterey Peninsula Airways in 1939, then via Charles H Babb to the Morrison-Knudsen Construction Company. Accident on March 21, 1943, at Anchorage, repaired with parts from NC229M. Given to Reeve in 1946, sat outside Reeve's hangar until 1960 when hauled to the Anchorage landfill. Rescued before being buried and passed to Boeing Management Association. Aircraft and spares flown to McChord Air Base near Seattle and stored. Eventually restored by Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation at Auburn and displayed at the Museum of Flight, Seattle. It is the sole surviving Boeing 80. NC229M c/n 1087. Parts from this aircraft were used to repair NC224M after that aircraft had been involved in an accident on March 21, 1943, at Anchorage.

Hamilton Metalplane Reeve purchased a Hamilton Metalplane, but it crashed on the delivery flight.

Lockheed Vega 5B N9424 Reeve flew a Lockheed Vega when with Panagra in South America. An accident at Santiago led to his resignation and move to Alaska. He is pictured in front of N9424 in Flying Beats Work.

Fairchild 71 NC119H c/n 657. Ex Marine Airways. Bought in the winter if 1939/40 to replace NC9745. NC9745 c/n 611. This was the aircraft that was blown over, then destroyed in a hangar fire when repairs were nearly complete.

Fairchild FC-2W-2 NC7034 c/n 136. Ex Utah Oil Refining Company. Bought by Reeve in 1941/42, the frame of the fuselage is currently on display at the Alaska Aviation Heritage Museum.

Ford Tri-motor NC8416 c/n 54.