Update 8:45 a.m. Tuesday:
The Coast Guard and partner agencies that have been looking for a missing plane bound for Yakutat called off the search late Monday evening.
The plane, owned by longtime Haines pilot Sam Wright and carrying Yakutat couple Hans Munich and Tanya Hutchins, stopped emitting its radar signal near Mount Crillon at the southern end of the Fairweather Mountain Range.
The three left Juneau on Saturday and were reported overdue that evening. Both Wright and Munich are pilots with decades of experience flying in Southeast Alaska.
Coast Guard public affairs officer Mike Salerno said if the agency got more information, it could resume its search.
“The decision to suspend is never easy,” he said. “Our condolences are with the family members of the passengers on board.”
Original story:
A Haines man and a couple flying from Juneau to Yakutat are missing after their plane never arrived at its destination.
Coast Guard public affairs officer Mike Salerno said the owner and operator of the missing 1948 Beechcraft Bonanza is Samuel “Sam” Wright of Haines. Wright was flying two passengers, Hans Munich and Tanya Hutchins, to their home in Yakutat on Saturday, but the plane never made it.
The Coast Guard, Alaska Rescue Coordination Center, Civil Air Patrol and Alaska State Troopers are entering their third day of searching for signs of the missing plane in the Fairweather Mountain Range. In a dispatch on Sunday, Troopers said they got a report that the plane went missing near Mount Crillon, which is at the southern end of the range.
“A Coast Guard helicopter from Air Station Sitka, Coast Guard HC-130 from Air Station Kodiak, and also Coast Guard Cutter Reef Shark were all dispatched to the scene on Saturday evening when we received the alert,” Salerno said. “Then Sunday and today’s efforts have included searches from aircraft … MH-60T helicopters, AC-130s and as well as AC-130s from the Air Force and also search assets from the Civil Air Patrol.”
Munich and Hutchins own Coastal Air Service – formerly Yakutat Coastal Airlines – where Munich has been flying for decades.
Salerno said the Coast Guard plans to have another update on the search later on Monday.
Weather conditions for the search region are expected to deteriorate. According to the National Weather Service showers showers and heavy rain are expected to move into the region, reducing visibility and bringing wind gusts and lower cloud ceilings Monday evening.
“The weather is a factor, but it isn’t the only factor,” Salerno said. “The altitude combined with the cloud cover is impacting visual searching.”
Searchers are also listening for the plane’s emergency beacon, he said.
This is a breaking news story that will be updated.
