A search and rescue mission was under way late Monday for a small plane and its three occupants, reportedly destined for a checkpoint along the 1,000-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, which started Sunday and is currently moving into remote wilderness south of the Alaska Range. The plane was reportedly expected in Takotna at noon Monday but never arrived.
The Cessna 182 plane left Merrill Field in Anchorage but its pilot, as-yet unidentified, did not file a flight plan indicating its destination, Alaska National Guard spokesperson Kalei Rupp said Monday night. Another plane flying in tandem over the Iditarod Trail lost track of the Cessna somewhere near Rainy Pass, traveling toward McGrath, a checkpoint community on the Kuskokwim River in-between the pass and Takotna.
Rupp said the plane that had been accompanying the Cessna eventually notified authorities when it did not arrive in Takotna as-scheduled at noon. The 11th Air Force Rescue Coordination Center was notified just before 3 p.m. that the Cessna was overdue. Three hours later, the state dispatched pararescue teams aboard Alaska Air National Guard aircraft.
It was not clear how closely the planes had been traveling when the Cessna disappeared, Rupp said.
According to the Rescue Coordination Center the plane's emergency locator beacon (ELT), which is activated in the case of a crash, was not transmitting and the search was launched solely due to the overdue report. ELTs are required on all U.S.-registered civil aircraft due to a law passed in the wake of the 1972 crash that killed Alaska Congressman Nick Begich, whose aircraft disappeared en route from Anchorage to Juneau and was never found.
The National Weather Service station at Puntilla Lake, in Rainy Pass, reported an overcast layer at 5,000 feet at 9 a.m. with visibility of 25 miles. There was an additional scattered layer reported at 2,500 feet at 3 p.m. while the visibility remained the same all day. Iditarod mushers reported balmy temperatures in the mid-30s and good trail traveling. Takotna weather reported a high broken cloud layer at 7,000 feet at 10:45 a.m. Monday with visibility of 10 miles.
It was possible that the plane had mechanical problems and landed somewhere out of communication. The Cessna also could have crashed in the Rainy Pass area with dysfunctional locator beacon. Still yet, the plane could have rerouted elsewhere, unannounced.
The search will resume at 6 a.m. with the Air National Guard and Civil Air Patrol aircraft.
Just two weeks ago, a plane crash in the same area seriously injured a pilot and former professional snowmachine racer who'd been flying in support of the Iron Dog race, also on the Iditarod Trail.
Contact Eric Christopher Adams at eric(at)alaskadispatch.com and Colleen Mondor at colleen(at)alaskadispatch.com