Anchorage Daily News

WASILLA -- The pilot of a small plane who walked away after a rough landing at the mouth of the Susitna River near Flat Horn Lake has been identified by Alaska State Troopers as Todd Christianson, 44, of Anchorage.

The airplane's emergency signal late Tuesday attracted the attention of rescuers, who found the aircraft empty and upside down in about three feet of water, according to previous reports.

Footprints led from the plane to a set of tracks apparently made by a second, unidentified plane nearby. The Rescue Coordination Center deployed a C-130 Hercules to the scene.

Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters said Christianson was attempting to land on a sandbar when a wheel hit a soft patch and the plane flipped. Christianson called a friend, who came in another airplane and retrieved him, Peters said.

Efforts to contact Christianson were unsuccessful.

The pilot called National Transportation Safety Board investigator Jim LaBelle on Wednesday, LaBelle said.

The crash resulted in a bent propeller and cracked windshield but no injuries to the pilot, he said. The NTSB is not investigating.

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