On Friday morning, troopers responded to the scene of a fatal airplane crash at mile 195.5 of the Parks Highway after being notified of the accident at 11:55 am.

A division of Forestry employee discovered the wreckage while investigating a fire caused by the crash.

When troopers arrived on-scene about 500 feet from the highway at 12:30 pm, Cantwell Fire personnel and the Forestry employee were already extinguishing the small fire caused by the crash.

Three people were discovered aboard the wreckage of the twin-engine Beech Baron.

The remains of the pilot of the aircraft, 61-year-old Steilacoom, Washington Dale Hemman, and passengers 74-year-old Greensville, South Carolina resident John Ellenberg,, and 52-year-old Simpsonville resident Laurie Buchner were recovered from the crashsitte.

Hemman was the owner of Let’s Fly ALaska, a tour company out of Fairbanks. He had gone ahead of the tour group of 19 aircraft to check weather in the area. He was reported missing by other pilots after he failed to return from the weather scouting mission.

NTSB, FAA and troopers are working to determine the cause of the crash.

The aircraft had taken off from Fairbanks earlier that morning.