Anchorage Pilot Uninjured in Johnstone Bay Incident

Location of Johnstone Bay. Image-Google Maps
Location of Johnstone Bay. Image-Google Maps

An Anchorage aviator was located uninjured after the Coast Guard launched a MH-60T helicopter to search for an ELT signal in Johnstone Bay on Monday of last week, troopers report.

At 1:32 pm on last Monday, the Coast Guard contacted troopers and informed them that they had detected an ELT locator beacon emanating from Johnstone Bay on the southern tip of the Kenai Peninsula.

The MH-60T was immediately launched and at 3:05 pm, located the aircraft partially in the water in the bay, and made contact with the pilot, 66-year-old Kurt Stenehjem, of Anchorage. Stenehjem told his rescuers that he was uninjured and was not in distress. Stenehjem told the Coast Guard and troopers that he was traveling to a cabin in the bay when he went down. He declined further assistance and arranged for his own travels out of the bay.[xyz-ihs snippet=”Adsense-responsive”]The National Transportation Safety Board was notified of the incident.