Overview
- A Piper PA-24 that left Merrill Field in Anchorage was found fully submerged in shallow water near Seldovia and all four people on board were recovered dead by troopers after they could reach the site.
- State troopers said they were notified in the early afternoon but had to wait for tides to fall before extracting the bodies from the aircraft around early evening.
- Authorities identified the pilot as 68-year-old Eric Middlebrook of Anchorage and three passengers as Bay Area residents Daniel Simons, 82, of Los Gatos, and Ronald Schmidt, 65, and Lance Schmidt, 20, of San Jose.
- The National Transportation Safety Board has opened a formal investigation and officials have not yet released a cause while investigators work around the challenges of shallow water, tides and remote access.
- The crash highlights the reliance on small planes for travel to remote Alaska communities and comes as regulators and residents scrutinize safety after several recent deadly regional accidents, an issue that could affect operations and community travel plans.