Alaska sightseeing plane crashes on cliff face by fjords leaving 9 dead

Home Top

Killed 'Shawshank' escapee was caught by a COUGH: Cops heard Richard Matt clear his throat in the bushes... but hunt continues in dense woodland for his partner who managed to give them the slip
'An attack upon the nests of fornication, vice and disbelief in God': ISIS's chilling words after Tunisian massacre as they release picture of the killer and warn 'worse is to follow'
'Ramadan will have lots of surprises': The chilling threats from ISIS social media accounts before Tunisia attack
Is ISIS plotting a U.S. strike on the Fourth of July? Police and spies raise alert over holiday weekend
British death toll rises to at least FIFTEEN: Council worker and his football referee nephew and beauty blogger, 24, are among the dead
Running for their lives: Astonishing footage shows crowds fleeing across beach and through streets of Sousse as crack of gunfire pierces the air
Kurdish fighters retake Syrian border town of Kobani just a day after it was seized by 'lunatic' Isis fighters who massacred 200 civilians
UN secretary-general, White House and Kremlin condemn terror attacks as Pentagon investigates whether they were coordinated centrally
Traumatized survivors tell of terror after being trapped in hotel corridor with ISIS maniac hurling home-made BOMBS
Mass funeral for victims of Kuwaiti mosque bombing that killed 27 as 'numerous' suspects are arrested
Plane bound for Kuwait from New York makes emergency landing at Heathrow after passengers are struck with FOOD POISONING
ISIS fanatic arrested over terror attack on French gas factory 'took a selfie with the severed head of his boss'
'Telling it like it is:' Chris Christie has now done everything BUT officially enter the 2016 presidential race as he launches a campaign website days before his official announcement
State Department refers to Iran's forced sex changes of homosexuals and transgenders as 'gender-confirmation' because their identity was 'ambiguous' beforehand
Obama's best-ever week? Gay marriage legal in all states, triumphant in healthcare reform and a stirring eulogy on gun reform and race relations - the President's 'victory lap' begins
Vikings cornerback Josh Robinson compares same-sex marriage to pedophilia and incest in wild rant on Twitter
From 'a grave mistake' to 'our country at its best': Presidential candidates react to Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage
Black activist is arrested after scaling the flagpole at South Carolina's Capitol and removing the Confederate banner - but state workers are quick to raise it again
Hundreds rally for 'Confederate Pride' parade displaying controversial battle flag amid national outcry over Civil War symbol
Obama denounces the confederate flag and insists he is backed by 'majority' of gun owners in calls for tighter control in stirring church massacre eulogy
States halt Washington pride: Same-sex couples rush to marry after Supreme Court legalizes gay marriage - but handful of hold-outs STILL refuse to grant licenses
Univision hits back at Trump golf club ban telling its employees not to conduct any business events at any of his premises after Miss Universe row escalates
'Everyone got on splendidly': Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie enjoy afternoon tea meeting with Duke and Duchess of Cambridge
Pictured: The cozy cabin with bunk beds, a barbecue and stocked-up kitchen where Richard Matt and David Sweat hid from hundreds of special ops police

Aircraft crashed near Ketchikan, Alaska, Thursday afternoon
Had eight passengers and pilot aboard - all have been confirmed dead
The eight tourists were cruise passengers who booked excursion flight
Tour company boasts how planes make on-water landings during the trip

By Kieran Corcoran For Dailymail.com and Julian Robinson for MailOnline

Published: 21:16 EST, 25 June 2015 | Updated: 04:57 EST, 26 June 2015

View
comments

Nine people have died after a sightseeing plane smashed into a cliff face overlooking a lake in remote Alaska.

Everybody on board the turboprop seaplane, operated by a local tour company in Ketchikan, Alaska, was confirmed dead on Thursday evening.

Rescuers had scrambled to the scene, 800ft above a lake in the picturesque Misty Fjords area of the southern Alaska coastline, bordering British Columbia - but arrived to find everybody dead.

Rescuers were forced back by bad weather Thursday night, and will make a second attempt to recover the bodies on Friday.

Scroll down for video

Plane excursion: Nine people aboard a deHavilland Otter seaplane died after their aircraft was found crashed. Pictured is one of the tour company's fleet of five planes

The passengers were all traveling on the MS Westerdam, a cruise liner which left Seattle on Saturday. The ship is pictured in dock in Ketchikan, Alaska

Foreboding: Pictured above is a webcam image showing weather conditions around the time of the crash

Eight of those on the plane were passengers from a passing cruise ship who purchased an excursion. The ninth was the pilot. None have been named.

Rescuers say the plane crashed around 11am, and the deaths were confirmed at 6pm.

It is not clear how the plane, deHavilland single-turbine Otter model, came to crash, though heavy, low clouds were seen in the area Thursday.

A spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board said: 'The initial rescue crew that went in had a very tough time because of the terrain. It's a very steep, mountainous area, and weather conditions caused them to stand down.'

The passengers were all traveling on the MS Westerdam, a cruise liner which left Seattle on Saturday. It was headed to Juneau along the Alaskan coast, but stopped on its journey after the crash.

Tour operators realized the plane had been out too long around 2pm Thursday afternoon, prompting search efforts. It was later found by a passing helicopter.

The cliff face where it crashed overlooks Ella Lake.

Webcam images show poor weather conditions near Ketchikan

Crash: The plane smashed into a granite cliff face above Ella Lake, shown above, towards the southern extremity of Alaska

The 75-minute excursion is operated by Promech Air, an Alaskan company, at a rate of $229 per person.

According to the firm's website, each trip includes a landing on the surface of a lake or a fjord.

A page dedicated the the excursion boasts: 'On Promech Air’s Misty Fjords Floatplane Tour, you will board one of our expertly-maintained and tour optimized floatplanes, taking off to soar above the city of Ketchikan and begin your flightseeing journey to the most enchanted region of the Inside Passage.'

Promech said that the crash happened about 11.20am, and the plane was one of five Otter aircraft in its fleet.

Marcus Sessoms, president of Promech Air, said: 'There is nothing I can say that can alleviate the pain and overwhelming sense of loss that we and the loved ones of those affected are feeling.

'At this moment, all of us share the pain and anguish of this terrible event. Our thoughts and our prayers go out to everyone touched by this tragedy.'

Cruise passengers: Everyone on the plane except for the pilot was a passenger on the MS Westerdam cruise ship, operated by Holland America Line. The ship, pictured above, was making an 'Inland Passage' route along the southern Alaska coast

A spokesman for Holland America Line said the company is 'incredibly saddened by this news and our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of those lost in this tragic accident.'

Wind and rain prevented any recovery after the wreckage of the aircraft was found.

There was no immediate indication of why the DeHavilland DHC-3 Otter turboprop went down, killing the nine people during the sightseeing excursion and no names have been released.

The NTSB was assembling a high-level team to investigate the crash, including three members from Alaska and at least two people from Washington, D.C.

Coast Guard Petty Officer Lauren Steenson said the agency received a report around 2:15 p.m. that the plane was overdue.

Troopers said an emergency locator transmitter activated in the Misty Fjords National Monument, and a helicopter pilot spotted the downed aircraft above Ella Lake, about 800 miles southeast of Anchorage.

The Ketchikan Daily News reported the Westerdam had been scheduled to leave the city at 1pm, but it remained in port Thursday evening.