"Ariel Tweto is so cute she's almost cartoon-like. With a petite frame and an infectious giggle, the 'Flying Wild Alaska' star was a bundle of energy when we hung out to talk about Season 2 (premieres Fri., Oct. 28, 10PM ET on Discovery). Actually, energetic doesn't even begin to describe her, as our journey through a wide range of talking points proves.
Born Ariel Eva Tuadraq-Atauchaq Tweto, the Eskimo firecracker from Unalakleet, Alaska, struggled to get her pilot's license all through Season 1 in the hopes of taking flight for her family business, Era Alaska, an airline that services the barren land and extreme conditions of the Alaskan wilderness.
Q: What is your native language? And is it thriving?
A: Is it thriving? No. I speak Inupiaq, and I know how to sing and dance fluently, and I can understand it when my grandma speaks to me, but I'm not fluent speaking. It's dying. As each elder dies, it's like a whole dictionary is lost. My mom's generation couldn't speak it -- they tried to ban the language and make them learn English, so my grandma's generation speaks it, and our generation is sort of bringing it back."
Get the Story:Ariel Tweto Talks 'Flying Wild Alaska,' Calls BS On Seeing Russia From Anyone's House (AOLTV 10/28)
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