Five people were killed when a commuter plane crashed in rural western Alaska.
The Yute Air flight was traveling from Bethel to Kipnuk and had one pilot and four passengers when it crashed about 12 miles southwest of Tuntutuliak on Thursday afternoon, according to a report by the Alaska State Troopers.
A Black Hawk helicopter with the Alaska Army National Guard was dispatched, found the wreckage of the plane, and confirmed that all on board the plane died in the crash. An official with Yute Air confirmed to KTUU that the pilot who was killed was Tony Matthews.
Tim DeSpain, a spokesman with the state troopers, said that recovery and investigation will be difficult because of the rural location and the conditions around the crash site.
“It was relatively quick that the site was located,” DeSpain said, “but the challenges can definitely come in with the difficulty of getting to the site and actually having boots on the ground.”
Yute Air canceled all flights, and authorities are working to get in contact with the families of those who died in the crash before the victims’ names are released to the public.
