Ryan Air was established in 1953 as
Unalakleet Air Taxi by Wilfred Ryan Sr. as a charter airline. In the 1960s, the company began handling
USPS mail delivery and transportation of schoolteachers for the Bureau of Indian Affairs between communities along the lower
Yukon River. In 1977, Wilfred P. Ryan Jr. took over the company after his father died of cancer. In 1979, the company expanded service beyond the
Norton Sound and changed their name to
Ryan Air. With a new fleet of
Beech 1900s and
Beech 99s, Ryan Air grew to the largest commuter carrier in Alaska by 1987, serving 85 cities and villages with a fleet of 28 planes. that killed 18 of the 21 people on board, led the FAA to shut down the airline in January 1988. In the 1990s, Ryan Air converted to a cargo-only airline and changed their name to
Arctic Transportation Services (ATS), adding
CASA 212 cargo planes to their fleet. They changed their name back to Ryan Air in 2010. In 2011, Ryan Air began passenger charters out of Anchorage, using a newly acquired
Pilatus PC-12. In 2015 Ryan Air acquired a fifth
CASA 212. In June 2024 Ryan Air acquired a fourth Cessna 208 EX. In July of 2025 Ryan Air acquired a second Pilatus PC-12. The new PC-12 is the NG model with executive interior, upgraded avionics and PT6-67P engine/propeller combination. == Destinations ==