Alaska News

Troopers, Air National Guard looking for missing plane in Lake Clark area

Two men and their small plane are missing in the Lake Clark area, west of Cook Inlet, according to the Alaska State Troopers.

The men, identified as Patrick Williams, 53, of Salem, Oregon, and James Minton, 65, of Wilkesboro, North Carolina, were due back from a trip on Thursday and reported missing to the troopers on Friday, said spokeswoman Megan Peters.

Williams was the pilot of the yellow Piper J-3 plane, which was carrying a rifle but no other survival gear, according to the troopers.

Both the troopers and Air National Guard members flew in the area Friday until 7 p.m. but could not find the men.

Five aircraft from the Bristol Bay area were searching Saturday, the troopers said.

Authorities are asking individuals in the area to be on the lookout.

Reach Nathaniel Herz at nherz@adn.com or 257-4311.

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By NATHANIEL HERZ

nherz@adn.com

Nathaniel Herz

Anchorage-based independent journalist Nathaniel Herz has been a reporter in Alaska for nearly a decade, with stints at the Anchorage Daily News and Alaska Public Media. Read his newsletter, Northern Journal, at natherz.substack.com

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