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Lost a good friend many years ago in the flight of a medivac chopper out of Kodiak and this really reminds me too much of that terrible time. They named the CG Clinic after Doc Rockmore. I wish it were realistic to hold out hope.

https://www.ktva.com/story/39874254/coast-guard-searching-for-missing-plane-near-kake

Aircraft debris found in medevac-plane search near Kake
Tuesday, January 29th 2019, 9:21 PM AKST
Updated: Wednesday, January 30th 2019, 7:52 PM AKST
By: Megan Mazurek
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Searchers have found aircraft debris, as they seek a medevac aircraft carrying three people missing near the Southeast Alaska community of Kake since Tuesday night.

On Wednesday night Guardian Flight, the operator of the missing King Air 200, released the names of its Juneau-based crew – pilot Patrick Coyle, 63, flight nurse Stacie Rae Morse, 30, and flight paramedic Margaret Langston Allen, 43.



"We continue to ask for prayers and support as we focus on these crew members and their families during this very difficult time," Guardian Flight officials wrote.

Randy Lyman, the company's senior vice president of operations, said Tuesday night that Guardian Flight had initiated a stand-down of its entire fleet until more information is available.

The U.S. Coast Guard emphasized Wednesday afternoon that it wasn't clear whether the discovery was linked to the missing aircraft.

"It was reported that debris from a plane was located in the water approximately 22 miles west of Kake, near the south tip of Admiralty Island in the Chatham Strait," Coast Guard officials wrote. "The Coast Guard cannot confirm the debris is from the overdue aircraft."

Coast Guard spokeswoman Chief Petty Officer Charly Hengen said Wednesday evening that a Wrangell Search and Rescue floatplane initially spotted the debris from the air, before it was retrieved by the crew of the Coast Guard cutter Anacapa.

“It appears to be a piece of aircraft wing,” Hengen said.

Additional pieces of debris were found Wednesday by an MH-60 Jayhawk crew out of Air Station Sitka, according to Hengen.

Another cutter, the Bailey Barco, had been sent Wednesday to assist the Anacapa in the search.

"The electronic locating transmitter is not broadcasting for the overdue aircraft," Coast Guard officials wrote in a statement at midday Wednesday.

David Berg, assistant chief of the Petersburg Volunteer Fire Department, said firefighters there had traveled 50 miles to the search area Wednesday morning in a 32-foot boat.

Embedded video

Cassie Schirm
@cassieschirmtv
It was reported that there was material from a wing of a plane was located in the water about 22 miles west of Kake. The Coast Guard can't confirm the debris is from the overdue aircraft, but crews are continuing the search in challenging weather conditions. @ktva #news #alaska

5:33 PM - Jan 30, 2019

“The weather can be – can kick up pretty bad there,” Berg said. “There can be some serious issues with wind and tidal action so they’re in an area that’s really exposed to winds from the north, from all directions.”

As a first responder, Berg offered a realistic assessment of any potential rescue within the search area.

“You can imagine it’s going to be very difficult for someone to survive, having gone down in an airplane and yet being exposed to the weather, these kinds of conditions,” Berg said. “Fortunately it’s not freezing; it’s been between 32 and 40 in the area.”

Hengen said the King Air 200 had taken off Tuesday from Anchorage with three people on board. It had been expected in Kake at 6:19 p.m., but never arrived.

"They were going there to pick up a person in Kake," Hengen said.

On Wednesday, Hengen said the Coast Guard wasn't aware of any distress transmissions from the missing flight.

"Nothing was reported like that," Hengen said. "They just lost radar contact."

Hengen said the search area was based on the King Air's last known position.

"It is roughly a 30-by-20 square-nautical-mile area inside of that search grid," she said.

Alaska State Troopers spokesman Tim DeSpain said the plane was reported missing at about 7 p.m. Tuesday.

In addition to the Coast Guard cutters and a Sitka-based MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew, the Alaska Army National Guard has sent a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter to assist in Wednesday's search. Petersburg Search and Rescue, as well as troopers and Alaska Marine Highway System ferries were also involved in the search effort.

Good Samaritans in the area have also helped look for the plane. Hengen said Wednesday evening that search efforts will now be refocused on the area where the wing was discovered.

"The Anacapa and the Bailey Barco will continue the search through the night," she said. "The rest of the SAR team, they are staying the night in Kake and are going to continue the search at first light."

Berg said the Petersburg searchers were set to spend the night in Kake, then resume their work Thursday morning. He expressed a special sympathy for the Guardian Flight crew, saying their flights are a familiar sight.

Embedded video

Cassie Schirm
@cassieschirmtv
Petersburg Search and Rescue crews are out searching for the missing Guardian Flight aircraft with three people on board. @ktva #news #missingaircraft


“We work very closely, hand-in-hand with the folks from Guardian and we certainly know those people; they come into Petersburg and pick up our patients on a regular basis,” Berg said. “You know, this is part of our family, and it’s real important to us as a community to be behind the effort.”

Chris Klint and Cassie Schirm contributed information to this story.


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It’s sickening. Listening to the pan pan all day on the radio. Way to often it seems.

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Three families with ripples in a lot of directions...

Heard about a young Native that had a call made for him that resulted in a plane crash. Caused him enough grief to commit suicide shortly thereafter. I have tried to find the story on the internet and failed, so I cannot swear to its truth, but the sentiment is adequate to bring a visceral reaction for/from me.


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frown Bad news for sure. Supposed to start blowing pretty good this weekend too.

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Never good. There was a medi chopper tbat went down in PWS a few years ago. Friend is paramedic that almost took that flight.


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I was out Fishing when that one was lost.

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18 miles out last contact? Maybe descending through precip/fog and sudden icing? Sounds like pilot got real busy real fast, whatever went wrong, and had no chance to call it in.


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It always hurts to hear of these. I flew for 26 years in the Army, including MEDEVAC. Lost a lot of friends over the years. Prayers for them and their families.


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Just heard last night from friends of the youngest on the flight that she was pregnant. Some sad folks out there.


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Awful.

Be interesting to hear what NTSB says.

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Search suspended. Brutal N wind now. RIP

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I am hearing letters have been sent to Bush medical folks reminding them that once the threshold for a medivac flight has been reached they should call just the one time. Pilots and crew are not told the nature of the problem or who is involved, ie, women, children, etc. As it can put pressure on them to attempt things the weather will not allow. Obviously they have clues, but they do not want them making worse decisions due to the nature of the problem...

Very sad...


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So sad. I’ll be keeping them all in my prayers......just awful.

My wife worked for our local fixed wing division of Airlift Northwest and I know that something like this is her worst nightmare. To lose such dedicated and caring professionals that selflessly give their best to help others is a great loss to EVERYONE! God bless them and their loved ones.


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The company in question seems to have a good record and they do it in bad places...


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Originally Posted by las
18 miles out last contact? Maybe descending through precip/fog and sudden icing? Sounds like pilot got real busy real fast, whatever went wrong, and had no chance to call it in.


Thought the same. That, or the pilot had a sudden medical condition. Kinda surprised that they don't fly with a copilot?

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We did a final page out for them tonight at our department. Sad stuff.

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Guardian is our carrier in SW AK and they are excellent in every way. Their dedication and determination saved the life of my wife and unborn daughter. The particular flight for my wife and daughter was at the absolute limit of flight parameters and their dedication made a difference that I can't express in words. I'm saddened that such an undoubtedly good and service centered crew has been lost. The community, company, and their families are in our continued prayers.


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Very sad, i can relate to their tough job, in 95 my brother was sent from BC here by his company to work on some engine or something up there and took sick, but he died on the flight out and he never made it home.
Tough to see the loss of those that try to help.


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Originally Posted by Sitka deer
Just heard last night from friends of the youngest on the flight that she was pregnant. Some sad folks out there.

Heard the other woman was just married.


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Just a horrible deal. Probably will never know what happened.

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Let us never forget in the dead of night, in lousy weather there are those that stand at the ready to help others in need.

May God bless and comfort the families of the lost crew.


I'm pretty certain when we sing our anthem and mention the land of the free, the original intent didn't mean cell phones, food stamps and birth control.
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Would be good to bring closure for families. I hope they find it.

https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/avi...-ambulance-wreckage-in-southeast-alaska/

Aviation
Specialized ‘ping’ detector from D.C. could be deployed to find air ambulance wreckage in Southeast Alaska
pencil Author: Zaz Hollander clock Updated: 16 hours ago calendar Published 17 hours ago

Federal air safety investigators are shipping to Alaska a device rarely, if ever, used here to aid in so far unsuccessful efforts to find the air ambulance that apparently crashed into the waters off Kake on Tuesday.

The decision comes as friends and family mourn the loss of the three crew members aboard the Guardian Flight aircraft: 63-year-old pilot Patrick Coyle, 30-year-old flight nurse Stacie Rae Morse and 43-year-old flight paramedic Margaret Langston. A candlelight vigil was planned for Friday night in Juneau from 6 until 6:19 p.m. -- the time the plane was expected to land in Kake.

Guardian Flight planned vigils Friday evening throughout the state, and in Arizona, Washington and California, to commemorate and pay respect to the three missing crew members. Vigils in Alaska were planned in Anchorage, Ketchikan, Fairbanks, Sitka, Kake, Nome, Haines, Hydaburg, Willow and Klawock.

The Beechcraft King Air 200 turboprop took off from Anchorage on Tuesday around 4 p.m. to make the roughly 600-mile flight for a patient pickup in the Tlingit village but never arrived.

Searchers spotted debris from a plane, including part of a wing, in the area of the plane’s last known location over Frederick Sound but was not able to locate any wreckage or crew members. The U.S. Coast Guard suspended the search for victims Thursday evening amid worsening seas.

There is no active search underway at this point, authorities say.

But it’s possible that federal aviation safety investigators could deploy a specialized device to try to find the wreckage.

The King Air was equipped with a cockpit voice recorder with an attached underwater locator beacon, according to Clint Johnson, Alaska chief for the National Transportation Safety Board.

Alaska investigators are waiting on a shipment from the agency’s Washington, D.C., headquarters of an underwater acoustic locator that reads the pings the box may be emitting, Johnson said. It should arrive Monday. The portable unit operates like a metal detector: The operator wears headphones and listens for the sound of a signal from the device, placed on the end of a long pole that’s submerged in the water.

The use of the device is not assured. It takes a two-hour boat ride from Petersburg to get to the search area, Johnson said, and high seas aren’t suppose to abate until a “very narrow window" of decent weather currently forecast for later next week.


“Nothing is set in stone, but we’re looking at the next weather window to be able to get down there with probably two of our investigators,” he said.

Alaska State Troopers said Friday afternoon that they have opened a missing persons case on the three people in the plane but are not currently attempting to look for the crew.

The Coast Guard conducted an intensive search involving multiple vessels with help from numerous agencies including troopers for three days, spokeswoman Megan Peters said.

It’s possible troopers could assist National Transportation Safety Board investigators if weather and resources allow, Peters said.

“We know this is a horribly emotional time for the families, and also the friends and the co-workers,” she said. “We’ll do what we can, but also have to look at what’s already been done.”


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Sad deal. Those folks though, want us to honor them and all first responders and troop on!

Thoughts, prayers and condolences to the family and friends, a true tragedy!


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Originally Posted by Sitka deer
I am hearing letters have been sent to Bush medical folks reminding them that once the threshold for a medivac flight has been reached they should call just the one time. Pilots and crew are not told the nature of the problem or who is involved, ie, women, children, etc. As it can put pressure on them to attempt things the weather will not allow. Obviously they have clues, but they do not want them making worse decisions due to the nature of the problem...

Very sad...



I'm not seeing how that is feasible.

When I flew medevac out of Bethel years ago, we got all of the patient information and condition for a good reason... We needed to prep the aircraft with the correct equipment. Also, the medics needed what to be ready for, much like information given to any ambulance called to a medical emergency on the road.

We had patients that attempted suicide with medication... we needed to know what medication so that the medics could bring the right treatment
Another was a premature birth- we needed to bring an incubator.
There was a boat accident with a very large man who exceeded the hoist capacity of our helicopter (when added to hoist rider and gear) We needed to be prepared to rig a short-haul using ropes ahead of the launch (takes 2 minutes on ground to rig, but not the kind of gear we would carry all the time on the aircraft).

Many other examples, but you get the gist.


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Originally Posted by LoadClear
Originally Posted by Sitka deer
I am hearing letters have been sent to Bush medical folks reminding them that once the threshold for a medivac flight has been reached they should call just the one time. Pilots and crew are not told the nature of the problem or who is involved, ie, women, children, etc. As it can put pressure on them to attempt things the weather will not allow. Obviously they have clues, but they do not want them making worse decisions due to the nature of the problem...

Very sad...



I'm not seeing how that is feasible.

When I flew medevac out of Bethel years ago, we got all of the patient information and condition for a good reason... We needed to prep the aircraft with the correct equipment. Also, the medics needed what to be ready for, much like information given to any ambulance called to a medical emergency on the road.

We had patients that attempted suicide with medication... we needed to know what medication so that the medics could bring the right treatment
Another was a premature birth- we needed to bring an incubator.
There was a boat accident with a very large man who exceeded the hoist capacity of our helicopter (when added to hoist rider and gear) We needed to be prepared to rig a short-haul using ropes ahead of the launch (takes 2 minutes on ground to rig, but not the kind of gear we would carry all the time on the aircraft).

Many other examples, but you get the gist.

I do, and the point I believe is that the pilot only needs to know what he needs to know for those purposes and the medics need to know what they need to know for medical stuff. I will see if I can get a copy of the letter for you. It is from your old stomping ground.


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They are looking for a boat right now to look for pings of the plane. Had to pass but I hope they find it to get some closure.

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Very sad news.
Prayers for the families, friends and hope for a blessing of life.


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Originally Posted by Calvin
They are looking for a boat right now to look for pings of the plane. Had to pass but I hope they find it to get some closure.


Rough time of year to count on weather to allow a search like that. The Kake SAR boat would suffice though. It's a Coldwater, 32' as I recall.

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I had spoken to one of their people in Anchorage about a week ago about a problem they were having with one of their jets. Very sad deal.


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Prayers lifted for all involved. 15 years of rural EMS. Many call outs for a helicopters and air docs / air nurses. Damn allergies...



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I only flew medevac for two years....

but it is tough when emergency responders in remote areas like Alaska, have a flight go down with
the crew, and patient all lost in the crash....

it certainly takes a real dedication to what you are doing...

prayers for the deceased and prayers for their families and the community.


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