A small passenger plane, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan, crashed into the icy waters of the Bering Sea on Thursday, killing all 10 people on board. Now, a team of investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is in Alaska, working against the clock to find out what went wrong.
The Tragic Flight
The plane took off from Unalakleet, Alaska, and was heading to an airfield in Nome, a city near the Arctic Circle. But at around 3:30 p.m. local time, the aircraft suddenly disappeared from radar. Hours later, the U.S. Coast Guard located the wreckage floating on an ice floe—a large chunk of drifting sea ice—34 miles (54 km) out at sea. The ice is moving 5 miles (8 km) per day, making recovery efforts even more difficult.
Search and Recovery Mission
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said their top priority is to recover the victims, followed by retrieving the plane’s wreckage for further investigation. However, bad weather is approaching, which could make their job even harder.
On Friday, Coast Guard divers managed to reach the wreckage and look inside the plane. Unfortunately, the damage was so severe that accessing it fully was almost impossible. Officials have not yet released the identities of all the victims.
Remembering the Victims
The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC) confirmed that two of its employees were among those who died.
- Rhone Baumgartner and Kameron Hartvigson worked in utility operations, helping maintain water systems for remote Alaskan communities.
- ANTHC described them as dedicated workers who truly cared about the people they served.
Concerns Over Air Safety
This crash comes at a time when the U.S. is facing serious aviation safety concerns. The NTSB is currently investigating:
A mid-air collision between a passenger jet and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter in Washington, D.C., which killed 67 people.
A medical jet crash in Philadelphia that claimed seven lives.
With multiple deadly crashes in just a few days, experts are now raising urgent questions about air safety.
What’s Next?
The NTSB has promised a thorough investigation to uncover what caused the Alaska crash. Families of the victims are still waiting for answers, hoping that this tragedy will lead to improvements in aviation safety and prevent future disasters.
