Flight embargos and USPS staffing issue slow down mail, movement of goods

The patience of Nomeites was tried lately as mail, groceries and long-awaited Amazon boxes were slow in arriving in Nome, and by extension in the regional communities.
Starting Wednesday, Alaska Airlines stopped accepting cargo shipments to Nome, Kotzebue, Bethel and Utqiagvik until Saturday, citing an unscheduled "maintenance" on one of their five freigthers. This comes after a freight embargo that lasted from Sept. 18 until September 26. “Due to ongoing freighter maintenance, Alaska Air Cargo has extended its temporary embargo on priority and general cargo shipments to Nome, Kotzebue, Bethel and Utqiaġvik/Barrow through September 26,” Alaska Airlines spokesperson Tim Thompson wrote in an email to the Nugget last week. Only Gold Streak shipments were accepted. Three of Alaska Air Cargo’s five freighter airplanes were not operational – one due to scheduled maintenance, two underwent unscheduled maintenance.
He said that the embargo allowed Alaska Air Cargo to move existing freight and restore normal service levels as quickly as possible.
According to Northern Air Cargo Senior Advisor David Karp, NAC has operated increased flights into Nome and other hubs since the embargo.  “Our scheduled service to Nome calls for five flights per week but over the past week we have operated two extra sections with our 737-800,” he said per email to the Nugget. NAC has three Boeing freighter jets in their fleet and added another 737-800 recently. “These larger aircraft add about 10,000 pounds per day in additional capacity for the market,” said Karp. “We have worked hard with local retailers to address supply chain problems and regular deliveries to local grocery stores.  We are absolutely committed to improving access to perishables and the things people in Nome and the rest of rural Alaska need and deserve to have.”
NAC also moves priority mail to Nome. Bypass mail moves on an “equitable tender” basis, meaning that each carrier is allocated an equal share to move.
The USPS is another player in the movement of goods. Handwritten signs at the Nome Post Office counter asked the customers for patience, citing staffing issues. Nome's post office currently has no post master. James Boxrud, spokesman for USPS in Denver, Colorado told the Nome Nugget that the “Nome Post Office has experienced staffing challenges and increased mail volume in recent weeks.”
USPS brought in two relief employees from other Alaska communities, and three additional personnel were scheduled to arrive. “We will continue to use these resources, and others as necessary, until the office is fully caught up,” he said.
He added that there are two vacant positions at the Nome post office, which were posted on September 15 “as part of our effort to strengthen staffing and improve service consistency for Nome customers,” he said. Finding housing for these relief workers who came from outside of Nome had been a problem, that since has been solved. 
When customers checked their tracking, oftentimes, packages were stuck in Anchorage.  “We are reviewing mail flow between Anchorage and Nome and are working with our transportation and processing teams to verify the status of mail movement and flight availability,” Boxrud said.
“We appreciate the community’s patience as we work through these staffing and operational challenges and remain committed to restoring consistent service for Nome customers.”