Wreckage of a plane that went missing on Monday has been found in the mountains near Valdez.
Alaska State Troopers say the sole occupant, 38-year-old pilot Andy Andersen of Sutton, died in the crash.
According to Troopers, Anderson departed Valdez in the Aeronca Champion plane Monday evening headed for Sutton, and a search was launched after he failed to show up.
Troopers say an Alaska Army National Guard Black Hawk helicopter crew found the downed plane Thursday afternoon at the top of Thompson Pass, about 1,000 feet off the Richardson Highway.
They say Andersen’s body was recovered and will be taken to the State Medical Examiner’s office, and that the National Transportation Safety Board plans to investigate the cause of the crash.
Dan Bross is a reporter at KUAC in Fairbanks.
