Anchorage man dies in plane crash near McGrath

an aerial view of a river
The Kuskokwim River. (Travis S./Flickr Creative Commons)

An Anchorage man is dead after his plane crashed near McGrath on Saturday, according to Alaska State Troopers. 

Troopers said 58-year-old Cary Foster was the sole occupant of the Piper PA-18 Super Cub he was flying, which went down approximately 60 miles south of the upper Kuskokwim River community. It’s not yet clear what caused the plane to crash.

Alaska Wildlife Troopers were notified about the crash shortly before 10 a.m. Saturday but poor weather prevented them from responding to the area.

A helicopter dispatched by the Alaska Rescue Coordination Center from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage was later able to reach the site and recover Foster’s body, according to a trooper report.

Foster’s remains have been sent to the state medical examiner’s office and his next of kin have been notified.

The National Transportation Safety Board will be conducting an investigation of the incident.

This is the first fatal plane crash in the McGrath area since 2011, when a Cessna 207 collided with the side of a mountain in poor weather while en route to the Yukon River community of Anvik, leaving two dead and four seriously injured.

Previous articlePalmer man killed at local gas station