A Douglas C-54 Skymaster aircraft, occupied by two individuals, collided into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday and erupted into flames, as per reports. No survivors have been located.
The aircraft embarked on its journey in the early hours from Fairbanks International Airport. It crashed approximately 7 miles (11 kilometers) from its departure point and “glided into a steep incline on the brink of the river where it ignited,” according to Alaska State Troopers.
Clint Johnson, head of the National Transportation Safety Board’s Alaska regional bureau, conveyed that the sequence of events leading from takeoff to the crash remains nebulous, though the tower operator “witnessed a substantial plume of smoke.”
Michaela Matherne was in flight from the village of Galena to Fairbanks, en route to catch a flight to New Orleans, when her small aircraft was redirected to confirm the exact location of the crash site.
“As we traversed the skies, there arose speculation of a cabin set ablaze, perchance a fish camp,” she relayed to The Associated Press via Facebook Messenger. “In truth, we were unaware of the spectacle until we touched down several minutes thereafter,” she recounted. “We were aghast and grieved by the revelation.”
The C-54 denotes a military rendition of the Douglas DC-4, a relic from the era of World War II aviation. The webpage www.airlines.net delineated the standard passenger capacity of a DC-4 during its zenith as 44, albeit most have been retrofitted for cargo transport.
The Federal Aviation Administration designated the aircraft as a Douglas C-54, while Troopers identified it as a DC-4. Johnson stated that the NTSB was dispatching investigators to the scene. Further particulars such as the flight’s intent and final destination were not promptly forthcoming.
