PLANE CRASH: US Sen. Stevens, 4 others Perish in Alaska Plane Crash

August 10, 2010

Washington, DC – The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has confirmed reports that US Senator Ted Stevens is one of the five fatalities in an airplane crash that occurred near a remote fishing town in southwestern Alaska en route to a fishing lodge owned by Alaskan telecom company, GCI.

Authorities said four other passengers of the plane survived the crash, including former NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe and his teenage son.

Reports said that nine people were aboard the private plane, a De Havilland DHC-3T Otter, which was also owned by GCI.

Volunteer rescue pilots have allegedly spotted the downed plane at around 7 pm Monday at about 17 miles north of Dillingham. But rescuers were only able to get the injured the following day due to bad weather.

Stevens, 86, was the elder statesman of Alaska politics. The Republican served 41 years in the U.S. Senate before being convicted on corruption charges and losing his Senate seat in 2008.

Authorities are still determining the cause of the crash.