FAQs

Beluga Air, LLC operates one 1964 De Havilland DHC-2 Beaver on floats. This aircraft is the quintessential ‘bush’ aircraft of Alaska and Canada. It was purpose designed for backcountry operations and has the ability to carry a large load in and out of very small places. The Beaver has a huge fan base as is evidenced by many websites dedicated to it. 

We also operate a 1948 Aeronca Sedan. This is a smaller bush plane that is great for light cargo loads and smaller groups. This smaller floatplane allows us to do local area charters, flightseeing, and flight instruction all year long!

We have one pilot, our Owner Wes Head. Wes earned his F.A.A. Pilot’s certificate in 1988, and has since flown various types of aircraft all over the world. He has over 13,000 accident-free hours and takes safety very seriously. Safety is our number one priority and we are happy to brag about our pilot being the most conservative and safe on the lake. Pilot Wes has the highest level of training in aviation such as his CFI (Certified Flight Instructor), ATP (Airline Transport Pilot) and Check Airmen certifications. Wes also speaks fluent Spanish and a bit of Portuguese for those visiting us from other countries!

For charters you are allowed to bring bear spray and firearms. The bear spray canister must be stored in the float, as an accidental discharge in the cabin could disable the pilot. All firearms will be transported unloaded.

For all bear viewing day trips, flightseeing and all other flights bear spray, firearms, or other weapons are NOT allowed.

Absolutely. If you have a large RV, please let us know ahead of time so we can make sure we plan accordingly. The parking lot is not secured, and Beluga Air, LLC is not responsible for theft or damage to your vehicles or their contents. It is monitored by closed-circuit video surveillance.

For Charters yes, the dog must be either in a kennel or tied to the interior of the aircraft. Please pick up after your dog while on the Beluga Air, LLC premises. Please notify us ahead of time so we can make sure there is room on your flight. We are a dog-friendly business as long as dogs are friendly! Small children and an office dog are on the premises.

An old Alaskan adage says, “whether you are riding a horse, driving a car, or riding on a plane, always dress like you have to walk out”. Dress comfortably and with layers. Our plane tends to get fairly warm with several passengers in it and there isn't much climate control. Plan accordingly if you are someone who tends to be cold!

A layered approach to clothing always works best for Alaska conditions! Plan for anything as you could see a wide range of conditions like cold, sunshine, bugs, wind, rain, and more in the same day. Always have a full set of rain gear, pants and jackets. A warm jacket that goes under your rain jacket is ideal. Puffy coats are great as they easily pack down into a small space. Anything like fleece, wool, or synthetic material are great that dry quickly and are light and warm. Having a warm hat, hat for shade, lightweight pair of gloves are all good ideas to have. A hands free backpack is recommended. Bags like totes, coolers, or items that can’t be carried hands-free are not ideal on our trips. Do not wear shorts, long pants are a good choice for all adventures. Bringing an extra pair of wool socks and a good pair of water repellent shoes or hiking boots work great for our conditions!

To avoid passing on additional cost to customers we decided not to offer online booking. We value your experience and are happy to answer questions you may have. We would prefer your booking experience to be a personal one, so get you the trip right for you to have the adventure-of-a-lifetime!

Booking your trip early allows you to choose the dates you want. Please call us for availability and contact us to discuss available dates or if you require additional information. If you contact us via phone (907)235-8256 or the contact form and we will be in touch within 24 hours.

To hold a reservation within the same calendar year, we require a payment in full which can be paid with credit card or by check. We will not hold a reservation more than 10 days without a deposit in full.

Full payment is required within 10 days of making your reservation. We accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, cash, and personal checks. Checks should be made payable in U.S. funds to “Beluga Air, LLC”.

Please mail payments to:

Beluga Air LLC

P.O. Box 3662 Homer, AK 99603

If you would like to pay by credit card, please let us know and we will send an invoice to pay via our secure processing site. We do not take any credit card information by email or over the phone to ensure a safe and secure method of credit card payments. The link we provide can be sent to your email to allow you to input your information to complete payment. A receipt will be sent via the secure system, as well as a tour confirmation from our staff directly with more information about your trip details and packing list.

All tour prices include taxes and park fees. We do not have a fuel surcharge or any other hidden fees.

We offer full refunds on all payments up to 30 days before your tour date. Within 30 days of your scheduled trip, deposits are non-refundable, and cancellations by the guest for any reason will not be eligible for a refund. However, should a mechanical issue, weather cancellation, or any service disruption occur on our end, deposits will be refunded in full. We will do our best to rebook your group on an alternative day if availability allows.  We highly recommend purchasing travel insurance to cover any unforeseen events that may prevent you from taking your trip within 30 days of departure.

We do not, however, you can check out a few of our tried-and-true suggestions here: on our page all about Homer, AK.

The maximum allowable weight on our De Havilland Beaver airplane (after pilot and fuel) is 1,200 pounds. The maximum allowable weight for our Aeronca Sedan is 450 pounds.

We have an individual weight limit for our bear viewing day trips of up to 325 lbs. per person, and it is essential that guests be physically able to enter and exit the plane without assistance for emergency purposes. We are weight limited for very important safety reasons. Please call us with your concerns and we’ll go over some options. Please expect to get on the scale when you arrive!

Absolutely. If you have 6-7 people booked for a bear viewing tour that will automatically make it a private trip for your group by reserving those seats on our De Havilland Beaver. If you have between 1 and 5 guests, you can buy out the plane paying for 5 seats and we will then ensure you have a private chartered bear viewing adventure! This is a great option for those travelling with kids as well, we can customize your day to ensure everyone has a great time and gives us the flexibility to leave early if needed.

All other charters, flight instruction and flightseeing tours are automatically booked as private trips.

Although tips are not expected, they are surely appreciated. Gratuity is not included in the price of any of our flights, so if you loved your tour or charter, the Pilot and Guide greatly appreciate the gesture! We don't take credit cards, CashApp, or Venmo for gratuities so please bring cash for this purpose.

Both our pilot and our bear guide are dedicated specialists in their respective areas of expertise. Instead of cutting costs and utilizing the same individual as pilot AND guide we provide professionals in each capacity.

We only use a float plane for our tours which provides a high level of safety given all the cross-water flying we do. Flying the Beaver on floats allows access to areas that wheeled planes cannot go to view bears, which may be more remote. Our bear tours, June – August are in Katmai National Park, an incredibly remote and scenic 4-million-acre park across Cook Inlet. We don't take guests to highly utilized areas in Lake Clark National Park.

Our philosophy is that a smaller group provides a better experience for our clients and minimizes our impact on the bears. We make only one trip per day, using just one plane with a small group of guests.

There is certainly an element of seasonality to the bears. We can reliably find bears SOMEWHERE nearby generally late-May through September. The areas will change based on fish runs and bear movement of course. For simplicity’s sake, we have kept ALL of our bear tours, guided or not, at the same price (even though flight times and guide fees change our cost depending on area).

Here’s a basic idea of places and times we go:

• June: Hallo Bay in Katmai National Park (guided trip)

• July: Brooks Camp in Katmai National Park (non-guided trip)

• Late July- Late August: Moraine Creek/Crosswind Lake in Katmai National Park (guided trip)

• Late August- September: Crescent Lake in Lake Clark National Park (guided trip by pontoon boat) or Brooks Falls in Katmai National Park by request only.

Our best advice for your trip is – keep your plans flexible! This is coastal Alaska, and weather conditions are highly unpredictable. Whether or not we can make the trip is 100% at the pilot’s discretion. If he feels uncomfortable, we do not go.

Our suggestion is to schedule your bear trip for the earliest day that you will be in Homer. Should weather prevent us from going, we will do our best to fit you in another day as our existing schedule allows.

Brooks Camp is particularly prone to weather cancellations. The geography of the mountain passes and the distance from Homer means there is a high probability of unfavorable conditions at least 3-4 times per summer. It is impossible to predict bad weather far in advance. Trust us, we want you to get there just as badly as you do! We know you’ve come a long way, waited a long time, and spent a lot of money to see these bears. However, your safety is our NUMBER ONE CONCERN.

Because we sell seat fares, we do not give discounts for children. Just like a traditional airline – a seat is a seat.

Our minimum age for GUIDED bear-viewing trips is 11. Our guide would still like to speak with the parents about the walking and attention span that is required for these types of trips. Our desire is to give ALL guests on the trip a quality experience, and kids are welcome if they are well-behaved and listen to the guide!

There is no minimum age for children to go on the un-guided Brooks Camp trip or Pontoon bear viewing tour, but traveling on our plane to these types of locations with extremely young children under the age of 4 isn't recommended.

*Please contact us if you are travelling with young children to Brooks or on the Pontoon Tour, or with children between the ages of 8-10 years old and want to do the guided bear viewing trip. We do have private charter options available for these circumstances which give us the ability to customize your trip and tour length as needed.

Flightseeing is available for everyone at any age and each tour is a private flight. We can shorten your trip to as low as 30 minutes which works great to give young children the Alaska floatplane experience!

It is not recommended to travel and tour on the same day, especially if flying from Anchorage. It is a half of a day to drive there and you want to make sure you have time to check in. Even if you are flying in and out of Homer, bear tours can get delayed either by weather, the wildlife or other reasons so it is always best not to risk it. Make your Beluga Air reservation on an earlier day than when you need to catch other flights and keep the whole day available for your bear viewing tour.

Both adventures are very different including in locations and what you will see. If you love flying doing both are a great way to see our area. Bear viewing takes place across the Cook Inlet in Katmai National Park and Lake Clark National Park. On clear days you will see the coastline, volcanos, mountains and possibly other wildlife. Those tours are narrated and give information about Homer, the inlet, and the national parks as well as awesome Alaska history and facts.

Our 45-minute flightsee is in the direct Homer and Kachemak Bay region. You’ll learn about the bay, the state park, and how the area was formed. On less windy days we make our way over top of the Grewingk Glacier so this is a fantastic way to see the ice from above and down into the crevasses. On really nice days we make our way over top to see views on the Harding Icefield.

YES! We provide discovery flights for those that may be interested in becoming a Pilot, as well as training for those that have experience and want to build hours or fly a floatplane in Alaska.