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The 800-mile fiber optic project had just passed a huge milestone earlier this month, when the company ran their first test and successfully brought connectivity to Unalaska. But on Monday, mere weeks away from the official launch, something damaged the cable.

The Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board is working on a five-year plan and a longer-term vision, while Aleutian residents wait for the M/V Tustumena's replacement; one year ago, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland issued a declaration to remove a slur against Indigenous women from place names on federal lands, but three elementary students in Dillingham had been pushing for change long before the federal government started its process; and both the Alaska Department of Fish and Game Board of Fisheries and the the International Pacific Halibut Commission begin meetings this week.

The ice-filled caldera of Takawangha, which rises 4,753 feet out of the Bering Sea, is in the far western Aleutians, about 55 miles west of Adak. The volcano has been showing signs of unrest since Nov. 18.

Four Aleutian volcanoes have been under elevated alert levels for about a year, and now they’re joined by a fifth; a woman accused of voting illegally in both Alaska and Florida during the 2020 elections will face charges in a Florida court; and a look back at Gov. Mike Dunleavy's first four years in office, who secured a second term.

New regional airline Aleutian Airways touched down at Unalaska’s Tom Madsen Airport on Nov. 16., and with it arrived the hope of more stable and affordable air service to the remote Aleutian Island. The roughly 15 passengers on board Aleutian Airways’ inaugural flight from Anchorage were greeted by a few dozen cheering Unalaskans, including local officials from the city and school district. “It's nice to see change,” said local Karley Parker. “And it's a very welcome change. I'm glad that we have options. It's much needed here in Unalaska, for competition and rates and just getting people off the island.”

Dozens of Unalaskans gathered at the island’s airport to welcome Aleutian Airways’ first commercial flight; Alaska’s two U.S. senators voted in favor of ending debate on a bill to protect same-sex and interracial marriage rights; and state health officials are urging Alaskans to get flu vaccines and take other protective measures as case counts increase rapidly across the country.

The moment many Unalaskans have been waiting years for is just around the corner: fast and affordable high speed internet has made its way to the island and is about to get booted up.GCI has been working since the spring of 2020 to bring fiber optic broadband to the region through its Aleutians Fiber project. And now, two and a half years later, the initial cable tests are finished and things are about to “get lit,” according to the telecommunications company.

The recent closure of the Bering Sea snow crab and Bristol Bay red king crab fisheries has some of Western Alaska’s coastal towns taking a hard look at their futures, and one small island is bracing for a huge hit. The Pribilof Island of St. Paul runs on snow crab — also known as opilio crab. The community’s Trident Seafoods is one of the largest crab processing plants in the world. So when fisheries management officials announced the species “overfished” and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game shut down snow crab for the first time in the fishery’s history in October, City Manager Phillip Zavadil knew the community needed to act fast. “We're trying to get creative and have people understand that this is going to happen more and more, and that we need to address it,” Zavadil said. “We can do something now, instead of waiting for next year, when we don't have any funding or we can't provide services.”

Aleutian Airways announced Tuesday that it had moved into a new office and hangar space at the Anchorage airport with a second Saab 2000 aircraft; and with less than one week left to campaign, some organizations are working to get more Alaska Native voters to the polls.

Millions of homeowners skipped mortgage payments during the pandemic, as people lost jobs and reevaluated their finances. In response, the U.S. Department of Treasury issued millions of dollars to states, tribes and U.S. territories to help prevent payment defaults and utility shutoffs. Now, the Aleutian Housing Authority is giving more than $2 million to homeowners in the Aleutian and Pribilof region through the Department of Treasury’s Homeowner Assistance Fund.