A Cessna 185 dropping supplies for the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race lost altitude during takeoff and crashed near the ski-strip checkpoint of Iditarod.
The plane was upside-down and abandoned when a wildlife trooper found it on Tuesday.
Investigation revealed the plane was part of the Iditarod Air Force, which flies support for the race. Its pilot, 57-year-old Diana Moroney of Chugiak, was later located in McGrath, where she told troopers the Cessna had lost altitude during takeoff and flipped. She and a passenger walked away uninjured. Moroney is a veteran Iditarod musher, having completed nine of the 10 races she entered between 1984 and 2005. Her best finish was 14th in 1987.
A trooper dispatch said the plane was severely damaged.