ALASKA: EXTREME LOGISTICS
is too remote for Lynden to reach. “It’s really everywhere there’s people,” says McKallor. “Our solutions almost always involve some kind of intermodal moves.” The most dif cult locales to reach, he says, are in Western Alaska and the Arctic region. “During large parts of the year, marine operations are impossible due to the ice,” he explains, “so planning ahead on projects and community resupply is critical.” NAILING THE LANDING Even though there are navigable waters in Western Alaska and the Arctic in the summer, challenges persist. “A lot of these locations don’t have dock facilities,” McKallor says, adding that because many locations are very small communities, air service often is limited to small aircraft such as 185 Cessnas. “You have to land on a beach like the Marines with big ramps that drop down or use Hovercraft to navigate shallow rivers and then go right up the beaches to these villages,” he says. Lynden supports a large national small-package customer, so the company serves all the state’s small rural communities. “Basically we serve every ZIP code to deliver small packages, most often from online ordering,” McKallor says. “In effect, we serve every part of the state, every ZIP code.” In order to service the wide array of Alaska’s divergent locations, Lynden has a variety of divergent equipment.
None of this is to say that state actions and assets alone will overcome the challenges of the Alaska land- and seascape. Vital to the equation are the capabilities and strengths of the state’s innovative and experienced logistics providers. TAILORED ASSETS Perhaps more than anywhere else in the world, Alaska presents logistics challenges that require tailored assets from the logistics providers serving the state. Lynden, a family of companies providing transportation and logistics solutions in Alaska—as well as Canada, the Paci c Northwest, Hawaii, and around the world—views those challenges through a very precise lens. “Ninety percent of the shipments we handle are LTL, so we are in a great position to understand our customers, including many B2C customers as well as a lot of B2B customers,” says Alex McKallor, Lynden’s executive vice president and COO. “Because we have an intimate knowledge of the freight, combined with our operating experience in marine, air and truck, and special modes like Hovercraft and PistenBullies and others, we can leverage our experience and expertise,” he says. “When you put it all together like that, it makes us truly unique.” No inhabited part of Alaska, a state also sometimes called the Last Frontier,
Its equipment and vehicles represent a distinguishing characteristic of the company that allows Lynden to operate year-round to the most remote places. “That’s how we’ve evolved as a company over time,” McKallor says. “We started out as a trucking company into Alaska and then customers asked us for help to get to distant places. We had to ask ourselves how we could do that, and we gured it out.” Recent transportation equipment and vehicles added to the company’s assets include PistenBullies, which are heavy- duty snowcats, and Hercules aircraft. “As long as there is a coastline or a short runway somewhere—no matter if it’s made of dirt, gravel, or ice—we can go there,” McKallor says. “That has really changed the landscape for us. It’s customer-driven.” THE RIGHT STUFF Shipping products to the harsh and remote regions of Alaska takes a logistics partner with a pioneering spirit, mission- critical reliability, and a weather-tested network of highway, vessel, barge, and air transportation. Span Alaska ts the bill through its investments in new equipment and new service centers in Anchorage and Fairbanks to ensure reliable service throughout the year. “Span Alaska’s history dates back ve decades,” says Michael Johnson, company president. “In that time, we’ve increased our footprint, built a network
“As long as there is a coastline or a short runway somewhere— no matter if it’s made of dirt, gravel, or ice—we can go there.” ALEX MKALLOR, Executive Vice President and COO, Lynden
64 Inbound Logistics • April 2025
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