Two small aircraft carrying a total of five people collided midair Wednesday, according to the Alaska National Guard.
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On one plane, 48-year-old pilot Harry Wrase of Wasilla and his passengers, 32-year-old Steven Paul Andrew of Kenai and 21-year-old Aaron Jay Minock of Russian Mission, were killed.
“Active research is ongoing and we expect to know the results soon”, said Clint Johnson, chief investigator for the Alaska National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
Three people were aboard the Cessna 208 Caravan of Hageland Aviation, and two on the Piper PA-18 Super Cub. Renfro’s offers wilderness hunting and fishing trips out of Bethel, according to its website.
‘He truly loved flying and serving the villages.
Alaska State Troopers also are responding. “And then subsequently, shortly after that, is when we started putting two and two together as far as a possible midair”, he said.
A Hageland Aviation Cessna 208 Caravan with three people on board collided with a Renfro’s Alaska Adventures Piper PA-18 Super Cub carrying two people, media reports said.
Rescue workers flew by helicopter to the crash site from Bethel, about 100 kilometres south of Russian Mission.
Skies were sunny when the crash occurred, Alaska Dispatch News reports.
A string of crashes in 2013 and 2014 placed Hageland under close scrutiny, the Dispatch reported, but improvements have been made, and Johnson said the company’s troubles are “in the past”.
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The cause of the crash is under investigation.
