A floatplane heading to Katmai National Park and Preserve crashed Tuesday morning while departing Anchorage, injuring six of the seven people onboard, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
Two were seriously injured, four suffered minor injuries and all six were taken to area hospitals, said Clint Johnson, head of the NTSB’s Alaska office. The seventh person was not injured, according to Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport Police and Fire Department.
Johnson said the passengers were visitors from the Lower 48 flying with Regal Air, which offers flights to Katmai, famous for its bear viewing.
The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver had just lifted off from Anchorage’s Lake Hood Seaplane Base when it crashed back into the water a little before 9:20 a.m. Tuesday, Johnson said.
“So it was during the initial climb phase, it crashed shortly after takeoff,” he said.
Beyond that, Johnson said he could not comment on any early indications as to what went wrong.
Airport Police and Fire Chief Aaron Danielson said the pilot reported a gust of wind struck the plane as it was taking off, and the pilot tried to correct its course when the plane crashed. The pilot and passengers were able to exit the crashed plane on their own, and nearby good Samaritans jumped into the water to help them out, Danielson said.
The plane was partially submerged following the crash, and Regal Air was working with its insurer to remove it from the water, Johnson said. After that, investigators would examine the wreckage, he said.
Reached by phone Tuesday afternoon, Regal Air declined to comment.
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the number of people onboard the plane.
Casey Grove is host of Alaska News Nightly, a general assignment reporter and an editor at Alaska Public Media. Reach him atcgrove@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Caseyhere.
