Coast Guard identifies three missing passengers who flew from Juneau to Yakutat

A Haines man and a couple flying from Juneau to Yakutat are missing. Their plane never arrived at its destination.

Coast Guard Public Affairs Officer Mike Salerno said the owner and operator of the missing 1948 Beechcraft Bonanza is Samuel “Sam” Wright of Haines. Wright flew two passengers, Hans Munich and Tanya Hutchins, to their home in Yakutat on Saturday, but the plane never arrived.

The Coast Guard, the Alaska Rescue Coordination Center, the Civil Air Patrol and the Alaska State Troopers are entering their third day of searching for evidence of the missing plane in the Fairweather Mountain Range. In a dispatch Sunday, the troopers said they received a report that the plane was missing near Mount Crillon, which is at the southern end of the range.

“A Coast Guard helicopter from Air Station Sitka, a Coast Guard HC-130 from Air Station Kodiak, and also a Coast Guard Cutter Reef Shark were all dispatched to the scene Saturday night when we received the alert,” Salerno said. “Subsequently, Sunday and today’s efforts have consisted of aircraft search efforts … MH-60T helicopters, Air Force AC-130s and AC-130s, and also search efforts by the Civil Air Patrol.”

Munich and Hutchins own Coastal Air Service – formerly Yakutat Coastal Airlines – which Munich has been flying to for decades.

Salerno said the Coast Guard will provide another update on the search later Monday.

Weather conditions are expected to deteriorate in the search area. According to the National Weather Service, showers and heavy rain will move into the region, reducing visibility and causing gusty winds and lower cloud ceilings Monday evening.

“Weather is a factor, but it’s not the only factor,” Salerno said. “The altitude combined with the cloud cover affects visual search.”

According to him, searchers are also listening to the plane’s distress signal.

This is a current news item. We will update it regularly.