[4] In 1929, in the midst of the Great Depression, with no money or prospects, he sneaked aboard the SS Aleutian steamship and made the trip to Seward, Alaska as a stowaway.
In 1931 he partnered with Harvey W. Barnhill,[2][5] an early day Alaska bush pilot to purchase a three-seat Stinson airplane from Varney Airlines in San Francisco.
[2] In 1934 he sold the company to rival Anchorage-based competitor Star Air Service for $50,000 and managed the combined operation for several years before going into mining.
[2][4] Star Air Service became financially unstable after McGee left, and he was called back to manage the company again.
[2][3] McGee Airways became part of Star Air Service which through a long series of mergers and acquisitions became Alaska Airlines in 1944.