NTSB report on fatal crash released

EUREKA — The National Transportation Safety Board has released a preliminary report on the crash that killed Michael Zobel.

According to the report, Zobel, a former Alaska State Trooper, had shot a moose earlier in the day Sept. 5, but hadn’t marked the spot where the carcass was in the tundra-covered terrain 74 miles northwest of Glennallen.

“Unable to locate the dead moose amongst the tall brush, he hiked back to the airplane that was parked atop a mountain ridgeline, and then he departed to do an aerial search for the moose kill site,” Zobel said.

A member of Zobel’s hunting party told the NTSB he watched Zobel do aerial maneuvers as he started his search.

“The witness said that he observed the airplane fly by his location at approximately 80 to 100 feet above the ground, traveling at an estimated 45 mph. He said that after it passed by it then began a left turn, and then the nose of the airplane pitched down abruptly and it began to spin. The airplane subsequently descended vertically, nose first, and it collided with the tundra and brush-covered terrain,” according to the NTSB report.

According to the NTSB report, bad weather hampered efforts to get to the crash site, which was 3.750 feet above sea level in brush and tundra. The plane, the report states, impacted “in a near vertical attitude.”

Late August and early September has been a dangerous time for Valley aviators. In two weeks, six planes have gone down in areas from Big Lake to Rainy pass to Sutton to Eureka. Overall, four people either from the Valley for with connections to the area have died in those crashes.

Official statistics show that statewide it has been the deadliest year for Alaska aviation since 2003. Nearly all of the victims were involved with hunting trips.

Contact Andrew Wellner at 352-2270 or andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com.