Troopers identified the pilot as Josh Murdock of Ketchikan.
Murdock, 38, was alone on board, Ipsen said. He was found dead at the scene.
The crash was reported at about 7:30 a.m.
The plane, a 1959 DeHavilland Beaver DHC-2, is owned by Pacific Airways Inc. of Ketchikan, said Clint Johnson, senior air safety investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board.
Fish boxes were found in the wreckage, according to investigators.
The plane was en route from Ketchikan to Thorne Bay when it went down in a non-residential area about five miles north of Ketchikan, Johnson said.
The plane was found on a knoll off the Tongass Highway in the Ward Cove area, Ipsen said.
Witnesses said the plane clipped some trees, causing it to lose its right wing before crashing, she said.
The NTSB is investigating.
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