Pipeline testing near Fairbanks, Alaska, circa 1976

Filmed circa 1976, this news footage documents valve testing activity for the soon-to-be-completed Trans-Alaska Pipeline at a location north of Fairbanks, near Mile 4 of Chena Hot Springs Road. Reporter Sue Lewis and site engineer Carl Bertram (names as heard in the footage; spellings unverified) discuss the purpose of the valve test site and its role in the larger pipeline project. At the time of filming, diesel fuel was circulating through the above-ground test section in a closed and heated system. The site was designed to evaluate how the valve’s motor operator performed in extreme Interior Alaska temperatures, assess insulation heat loss, and eventually test for paraffin buildup once crude oil from Prudhoe Bay was introduced. The installed test section was intended to be tied directly into the finished line the following spring. According to online sources, the first sections of pipe for the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) were laid in March 1975, with oil first flowing in June, 1977. Source & Format Color, sound, 16mm film KTVF-TV Collection (AAF-6000) Alaska Film Archives Repository The Alaska Film Archives is a unit of the Alaska and Polar Regions Collections & Archives Department, Elmer E. Rasmuson Library, University of Alaska Fairbanks. Contact If you have additional information or can help further identify what’s seen here, we welcome your insights. Please contact us using the information in the “About” section. Support the Alaska Film Archives The Alaska Film Archives appreciates your support. Donations of any amount help us preserve and share Alaska’s audiovisual history. Visit the “About” section of our YouTube channel to learn how you can help. Thank you!