AK: Alaska pilot, hunter are presumed dead in plane crash at Denali National Park and Preserve
08/13/2013
Two Alaskans, a pilot and a hunter, are presumed dead after their plane crashed in a narrow ravine in the southwest preserve area of Denali National Park and Preserve this week, National Park Service officials said Saturday.
The Park Service said in a statement that the plane’s pilot, Jason Tucker, 45, from Wasilla, and passenger Nicolas Blace, 44, of Chugiak, are both presumed to have died in Wednesday’s crash, though their bodies have not yet been recovered.
Tucker was flying Blace from one remote airstrip to another near the preserve’s boundary when the Piper PA-18 Super Cub crashed, based on information from Blace’s hunting partner, according to the Park Service.
Due to the challenging terrain, recovery of the bodies and the aircraft, “if determined possible, will involve a complex and potentially high-risk ground operation,” and could be attempted in the coming days if weather conditions allow, the Park Service said.
“This is in a very, very steep, deep ravine,” said Clint Johnson, chief of the National Transportation Safety Board’s Alaska Regional Office. “In some places, it’s a vertical drop down.”
The men’s next of kin have been notified.