Alaska Air National Guard Rescues Four From Plane Crash

JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska – Alaska Air National Guardsmen of the 176th Wing rescued four people from an Aug. 30 plane crash at a Montague Island coastal sandbar about 60 miles southeast of Seward. The Alaska Rescue Coordination Center, or AKRCC, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, or JBER, opened the mission following receipt of a signal from an aircraft 406 MHz emergency locator transmitter registered to the owner of a Cessna 180. The AKRCC requested assistance from the 176th Wing search-and-rescue duty officer, who dispatched a 210th Rescue Squadron HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopter with 212th Rescue Squadron pararescuemen, also known as PJs, on board. In addition to the 406 emergency locator transmitter signal, the party also used a consumer-grade two-way satellite communication device, which facilitated information flow with the AKRCC and helped get a more precise location for the crash site.

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