Coast Guard: 6 dead in Alaska sightseeing plane crash

By BECKY BOHRER and MARK THIESSEN
Associated Press

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The U.S. Coast Guard says a sightseeing plane crashed Thursday in southeast Alaska, killing all six people on board. The Coast Guard says the plane’s emergency alert beacon was activated around 11:20 a.m. in the area of Misty Fjords National Monument, near Ketchikan. A helicopter company reported seeing wreckage on a ridgeline in the search area, and Coast Guard crew members found the wreckage around 2:40 p.m. The Coast Guard says there were no survivors. Recovery efforts are expected Thursday and Friday. Holland America Line says the five passengers on the flight were from the company’s cruise ship Nieuw Amsterdam, which stopped in Ketchikan on Thursday.