Alaska Air National Guardsmen of the 176th Wing worked with the Alaska State Troopers and U.S. Coast Guard District 17 to rescue five victims of a March 5 crash of a Cessna 206 at Lake Iliamna.

The Alaska Rescue Coordination Center received an emergency locator transmitter signal from the Cessna 206 early in the afternoon showing the Cessna’s location on the lake’s ice 7 miles southwest of the town of Iliamna and approximately 200 miles southwest of Anchorage.

The Alaska State Troopers launched a King Salmon-based R44 helicopter to the area while local crews and privately owned aircraft from Iliamna attempted to access the crash site.

A good Samaritan flying a Cub aircraft on skis located the Cessna 206 and landed at the crash site. He reported the five adult occupants were alive but had sustained serious injuries.

The Alaska Rescue Coordination Center requested assistance from the 176th Wing and from the Coast Guard at Air Station Kodiak.

At the request of and under the direction of the AKRCC, Alaska Air National Guardsmen of 210th, 211th and 212th Rescue Squadrons launched on a 210th RQS HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter and a 211th RQS HC-130J Combat King II from JBER. The Coast Guard launched an MH-60 Jayhawk from Kodiak.

Both the HH-60G and HC-130J carried Guardian Angel pararescuemen, who are highly trained paramedics.

Poor weather initially prevented both services from reaching the area, but by early evening both helicopters arrived at the crash site. The Coast Guard MH-60 hoisted two of the crash victims, and the 210th RQS HH-60 landed on the ice, transporting three crash victims from the scene.

The victims were evacuated to Iliamna and transloaded to the HC-130J and civilian medical evacuation aircraft. The Combat King crew transported one injured victim to JBER and transloaded the patient to a ground ambulance for further evacuation to an area hospital.

According to the Alaska State Troopers, as of March 6 all five occupants were continuing to receive medical care at Anchorage area hospitals with one listed as serious, one as fair and three as stable.

Alaska Air National Guard Lt. Col. Christen Brewer, AKRCC director, said interagency coordination was key for the complex rescue mission.

“This joint effort required extensive teamwork between the Alaska Air National Guard, the Alaska State Troopers, the Coast Guard, and good Samaritans on the ground,” she said. “With Alaska weather and distance, teamwork is crucial to ensure the best outcome of an unfortunate situation.”

For this mission, 210th RQS, 211th RQS, 212th RQS, the Alaska State Troopers, Coast Guard District 17 and the AKRCC were credited with five saves.