Alaska State Troopers report a sad end to the search for Andy Anderson, who had disappeared while flying to Sutton from Valdez on Monday afternoon.

An Alaska Army National Guard HH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crew, at 2:15 pm, while searching in the Thompson Pass area on Thursday, spotted the downed Aeronca. The aircraft was located at the top of the pass about 1,000 feet from the Richardson Highway.

Alaska State Troopers responded to the area and located the remains of 38-year-old Andy Anderson. His body was recovered and turned over to theState Medical Examiner’s office in Anchorage for autopsy.

Anderson had been en route from Valdez to his hometown in Sutton in his red and white Aeronca Champion aircraft, tail number N4340C when he disappeared. He was reported overdue approximately 2 hours after his scheduled arrival in Sutton.

AKRCC, Civil Air Patrol (CAP), US Coast Guard, Alaska State Troopers, and Alaska Army National Guard assets took up the search for the  aircraft but initially, weather hampered efforts.

Next of kin were notified of the discovery and the National Transportation Safety Board will be working to find the cause of the crash.

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