2 dead in Friday morning plane crash

Troopers were notified around 11:30 a.m.

Alaska State Troopers logo.

Alaska State Troopers logo.

A Happy Valley resident and a Ninilchik resident are dead following a Friday morning plane crash near Tustumena Lake.

A dispatch from Alaska State Troopers on Friday says that a team from the Alaska Rescue Coordination Center had gone to the scene where a single-engine Champion 7GCBC plane had crashed near the lake. Troopers were notified around 11:30 a.m.

Pilot and passenger Danny Presley, 70 of Happy Valley, and Keith Presley, 58 of Ninilchik, were found dead.

Keith was the owner and operator of Chinook Auto, per his Facebook page, and once coached the Ninilchik Wolverines to a basketball state championship in 2010.

The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the cause of the crash.

Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.

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