8 HOLLAND AMERICA LINE'S MS WESTERDAM CRUISE SHIP PASSENGERS, 1 PILOT ON A SCENIC FLIGHT KILLED IN A DE HAVILLAND CANADA DHC-3T TURBINE OTTER PLANE CRASH NEAR KETCHIKAN, ALASKA. PROMECH AIR IS THE FLIGHT OPERATOR.

JUNE 25, 2015

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA

All nine people on board a small float plane that was taking cruise ship passengers on a scenic flight around the far-Southeast Alaska community of Ketchikan died from injuries sustained in a crash into a cliff Thursday afternoon.

Eight passengers of Holland America Line's MS Westerdam were participating in a shore excursion operated by Ketchikan-based Promech Air, when shortly before 1 p.m. something went wrong. 

Federal Aviation Administration cameras show that the cloud ceiling was low, and winds were whipping around Misty Fjords, where the DeHavilland DHC-3T Turbine Otter crashed into a granite rock face near Ella Lake.

A similar aircraft -- a turbine-powered DeHavilland DHC-3ST Otter -- was at the center of a July 2013 crash in Soldotna that killed a pilot and two families who were visiting from South Carolina.

Longtime Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens also died in a DHC-3T Otter.

In the Thursday crash, a Temsco helicopter pilot initially spotted the downed aircraft approximately 800 feet above the Ella Lake, according to an Alaska State Troopers dispatch.

Jerry Kiffer, on-scene commander for Ketchikan Volunteer Rescue, said it took two hours to get to the scene of the crash because of the inclement weather. 

Rescuers were dropped a few hundred yards from the crash site and climbed the rest of the way to the site, which he described as steep and covered in moss.

The aircraft appears to have hit the base of a 50-foot rock cliff and then come to a rest on the 60-degree base of the slope, Kiffer said.

"Certainly, we've done this many times before," Kiffer said of the attempted rescue. "No different than many they've been on. It's important we get the job done and get it done quickly."

Chris John of the Ketchikan Volunteer Rescue Squad said 13 volunteers with the organization went out to search the scene of the crash Thursday in two helicopters and two floatplanes. He described conditions as “very turbulent” with winds around 25 mph.

“The conditions were really steep,” John said. “It was a bad crash site.”

National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Clint Johnson said it is unclear if weather played a role in the crash, but that will be investigated, and for now the rain and wind is hampering efforts to investigate.

"Obviously we're going to have to play the weather by ear and hopefully get this done sometime tomorrow," Johnson said late Thursday by phone.

The cruise line said in a statement that the ship was visiting Ketchikan as part of a seven-day Inside Passage voyage which began June 20.

On Promech Air's website, a floatplane trip to Misty Fjords was advertised for $229 per person and billed as a "once in a lifetime trip."

"Whether you are visiting Ketchikan by cruise ship, vacationing in Ketchikan, touching base with friends and family nearby or just looking for a day trip out of Ketchikan while on business, this tour is a great way to see this unique corner of Alaska," the company wrote of the 75-minute trip, which includes a 10-minute water landing on a lake or fjord.

While the ship's departure was temporarily delayed according to passengers and family members who contacted Channel 2 News, the MS Westerdam could be seen on closed circuit cameras leaving moments before 7 p.m.

"We are incredibly distressed by this situation, and our thoughts and prayers are with those on board the plane and their families," Holland America officials wrote in a news release. "Holland America Line is extending its full support to traveling companions of the guests involved."

Promech declined to comment on the incident when reached by phone by a Channel 2 News reporter, but the company later sent a news release.

"There is nothing I can say that can alleviate the pain and overwhelming sense of loss that we and the loved ones of those affected are feeling," wrote Marcus Sessoms, the company's president. "At this moment, all of us share the pain and anguish of this terrible event."

Troopers said victims of the family will not be identified until next-of-kin have been notified, a process that can take hours or days.

Date:	25-JUN-2015
Time:	14:20LT
Type:	de Havilland Canada DHC-3T Turbine Otter
Owner/operator:	Promech Air
Registration:
C/n / msn:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 9 / Occupants: 9
Other fatalities:	0
Airplane damage:	Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location:	near Ella Lake, Misty Fjords National Monument, AK -   United States of America
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Non Scheduled Passenger
Departure airport:
Destination airport:

Narrative:
The aircraft operated by Promech Air on an aerial excursion carrying passengers from the Holland America cruise line flight impacted steep, mountainous terrain about 25 miles northeast of Ketchikan above Ella Lake in the Misty Fjords area of Alaska. The cruise line has confirmed 9 fatalities.

Sources:

http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=177295
http://www.ktuu.com/news/news/plane-with-9-people-on-board-reported-crashed-near-ketchikan/33779404
http://www.adn.com/article/20150625/plane-9-onboard-crashes-cliffside-southeast-alaska
http://www.promechair.com/tours-flightseeing/magnificent-misty-fjords-by-floatplane.aspx
http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/plane-missing-in-alaska-with-nine-on-board/