Alaska Freight Lines (AFL) was started by Alfred Ghezzi, Jr. (Al-Ghezzi), Bill Miller, Slim Delong, Tom Donahue, and Gene and Larry Rogge in March 1943. This ownership configuration lasted around a year. The equipment was sold in 1944. Al-Ghezzi wasn’t done yet. He came back in 1945 and restarted AFL on his own. He went on to become one of the great transportation pioneers in Alaskan history.
In 1955, Alfred Ghezzi, Jr. (Al-Ghezzi) and AFL took possession of the Sno-Freighter. He paid R.G. LeTourneau an advance of $75,000, with a total cost of $450,000. The Sno-Freighter completed one successful supply trip. On the second trip, the Sno-Freighter jack-knifed while going down a steep grade and caught fire. AFL lost nearly a million dollars from July 1955-March 1956, largely due to the Sno-Freighter contract and equipment loss.
