Thread: Former Sen. Ted Stevens confirmed dead in Alaska plane crash

Former Sen. Ted Stevens confirmed dead in Alaska plane crash

Stevens' family 'has just been notified that he did not survive' Monday's crash, his former chief of staff says. Ex-NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe was also among nine people aboard; his condition is unknown.


By Kim Murphy, Los Angeles Times

August 11, 2010

Reporting from Seattle —

Ted Stevens, the gruff and bullishly determined longtime former U.S. senator from Alaska, died in Monday night's crash of a small plane near a small fishing town on Alaska's Bristol Bay, a family spokesman confirmed Tuesday.

"The family has just been notified that he did not survive," said Mitch Rose, former chief of staff for Stevens, 86, who served 41 years in the Senate before being convicted on corruption charges and losing his seat in 2008. The charges were later dismissed because of prosecutorial misconduct.

Former NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe was also on the plane, which had a total of nine people on board, but there was no word on his condition.

Stevens and O'Keefe reportedly had been traveling to a luxury fishing lodge owned by Alaska telecom company GCI, where high-powered political guests are frequently wined and dined. The plane went down about 7 p.m. Monday 17 miles north of Dillingham, but rescuers were hampered by high winds and low clouds before getting to the scene Tuesday morning.

Nine people were aboard the private plane, a De Havilland DHC-3T Otter owned by telecom company GCI, that crashed Monday night 17 miles north of Dillingham, a small fishing town on Alaska's Bristol Bay that is now in the height of salmon fishing season. Rescuers were hampered from reaching the crash site overnight by bad weather, authorities said.

"The weather has been hampering pretty much everything going out to the scene," said Alaska State Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters.

"I can tell you that we have the best search and rescue people pretty much anywhere. They do this pretty much every day, and if we can't get there, that means it's bad and unsafe," Peters said.

The National Transportation Safety Board has dispatched investigators from Anchorage and Washington, D.C. Board chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman is accompanying the team and will serve as spokesperson for the on-scene investigation, the agency said in a statement.

Several "good Samaritans," including a doctor, had reached the site earlier and were rendering emergency aid to the victims, added McHugh Pierre, director of the information office for the Alaska Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.

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.

The Justice Department later moved to set aside the conviction because of prosecutorial misconduct. Prosecutors admitted they had failed to hand over contradictory statements from a key witness that might have been exculpatory.

Stevens' former wife, Ann, died in a plane crash in 1978 that he survived.

O'Keefe, 54, headed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration from 2001 to 2005 and is chief executive of EADS North America, a subsidiary of the European aerospace company EADS. The company confirmed that O'Keefe was on board the flight but said it had no information on the condition of any of the passengers.

"I join Alaskans and others across the country waiting for details of last night's tragic plane crash near Dillingham. My thoughts and prayers are with those on board the plane and their families as we wait for more information." U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, a Democrat who defeated Stevens, said in a statement.

Hayes, the Alaska National Guard spokesman, said when asked about the report that Stevens had died: "I can't confirm it at this time."

The House majority office of the Alaska legislature also said they had received no direct word, nor had Begich's office.

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski also issued a statement of concern: "While we await further information about this tragic accident, I ask Alaskans to join me in prayer for all those aboard the aircraft and their families," she said.

kim.murphy@latimes.com

Copyright © 2010, Los Angeles Times

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld ... 6610.story

O'Keefe and son are alive but are seriously injured according to a report i just heard on the radio.

The report also confirms the death of Stevens

Former U.S. senator killed in Alaska plane crash, staffer says

By the CNN Wire StaffAugust 10, 2010 2:59 p.m. EDT

Ted Stevens' history-making legacy

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Former Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, died in the crash, his former chief of staff said
NEW: At least three people were injured
NEW: It took the crews awhile to get to the crash site
iReport: See and share images and info with CNN.

(CNN) -- Former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens has died in a plane crash near Dillingham, Alaska, and his family has been notified, the senator's former chief of staff Mitch Rose confirmed to CNN Tuesday.

The private plane carrying Stevens and a former head of NASA crashed Monday night in a rugged stretch of southern Alaska. The crash left at least five people dead, but at least three people survived, authorities said.

Maj. Guy Hayes, a spokesman for the Alaska Air National Guard, said rescue crews were working to get at least three injured people away from the scene. He said it's possible there may be more survivors.

"They have definitely worked on two people. They're working on a third person to get him out of there right now," said Hayes, who noted that rough terrain has complicated rescue efforts.

"It's been pretty difficult to get into the area," Hayes said. "It took them roughly about 12 hours, I think, from when the plane was spotted by good samaritans until we got there on scene."

EADS North America said its chief executive officer, Sean O'Keefe, who formerly headed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, was a passenger on the aircraft.

Stevens' family would neither confirm nor deny reports that the former Alaska Republican senator was aboard, but earlier family members released a statement offering their prayers for the crash victims.

"The Ted Stevens family offers their prayers for all those on board and for their families. We thank the brave men and women who are working to reach the site," said the statement, read on CNN by Rose.

"We continue to work with the Alaska National Guard, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Alaska state troopers. We thank everyone for their support and prayers," the statement said.

The news has reverberated across the state and country. Sarah Palin, the former Alaska governor and the 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate, sent out a Twitter message saying: "Heartbreaking Bristol Bay plane crash. Alaska's heart surrounds loved ones. More info coming in; pls pray for Dillingham rescue this morning."

The White House also cited the loss. "Our hearts and our thoughts and prayers go out to all the families who suffered a loss today. We'll have more information soon," said deputy press secretary Bill Burton.

Federal Aviation Administration reports said eight or nine people were on the plane, which crashed near the town of Dillingham. The reports said five people died and others were injured.

The agency's Alaska office said the flight was from GCI Lodge on Lake Nerka to Dillingham. Matthew Felling, an anchor and a reporter for KTVA, told CNN the people on the flight were headed to a fishing trip.

Though EADS North America confirmed O'Keefe was on the plane, there was no word on his fate.

The National Transportation Safety Board has assembled a team to investigate the crash. Senior air safety investigator Clint Johnson, from the board's Anchorage regional office, will be the investigator in charge, and the entire team is expected in Dillingham by midday.

Inclement weather was reported in the area at the time of the crash, said Hayes, the Coast Guard spokesman.

The Dillingham region, near the Bering Sea southwest of Anchorage, is rugged terrain surrounded by mountains.

Storms there don't move quickly during this time of year but aren't as strong as those in winter, said Rob Marciano, CNN meteorologist.

"We haven't seen visibility improve much, so fog is an issue, and we haven't seen much in the way of that clearing," he said.

Megan Peters, a state police spokeswoman, said the crash area is a remote location that's hard to reach.

"We have the best of the best in the search-and-rescue field in this state ... and when they have trouble getting into an area, I know it's bad," she said.

There is a lot of air travel in the state amid perilous weather and terrain. In 1978, Stevens survived a plane crash. In 1972, House Majority Leader Hale Boggs and U.S. Rep. Nick Begich were traveling in a plane that is thought to have crashed in Alaska. It was never found. Nick Begich was the father of the current U.S. senator, Mark Begich.

The NTSB said the plane crashed 10 miles northwest of Aleknagik about 8 p.m. Alaska Daylight Time. Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Paul Takemoto said that the plane was a DeHavilland DHC-3 Otter. He said its tail number was N455A and it was registered to GCI Communications Corp., based in Anchorage.

Bush pilots commonly use such planes.

The Air Force 11th Rescue Coordination Center, which is manned by Alaska National Guardsmen, was contacted by Dillingham Flight Service after someone spotted the downed aircraft.

Col. Dave Lapan, a Pentagon spokesman, said three rescue squadrons of the Alaska Air National Guard had been asked by the coordination center to respond to the scene. They fly both helicopters and fixed wing-aircraft. The Alaska Air National Guard and U.S. Coast Guard said they had personnel on the crash site -- about 17 miles north of Dillingham, according to Alaska's Department of Military and Veteran Affairs.

An Alaska Air National Guard HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter carrying rescue crews landed Tuesday morning and gave "medical support to the crash victims," it said.

O'Keefe had a long career in the government and higher education, most recently serving as NASA administrator from December 2001 until his resignation in February 2005.

Before heading NASA, O'Keefe served for 11 months as deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget, overseeing the preparation, management and administration of the federal budget.

Stevens served more time in the U.S. Senate than any Republican in history.

He earned the nickname "Uncle Ted" and a reputation as one of the most effective of all pork-barrel lawmakers, a senator who funneled billions of federal dollars to his home state.

Born November 18, 1923, Stevens graduated from UCLA and Harvard Law School and moved to Alaska in the 1950s to work as a lawyer. He was elected to the state's House of Representatives in 1964 and 1966.

In July 2008, a federal grand jury indicted Stevens for making false statements on financial disclosure forms. He was convicted on October 27, 2008.

The next month, Stevens lost a bid for re-election to Democratic challenger Mark Begich, then the mayor of Anchorage. Citing prosecutorial misconduct, a federal judge later dismissed Stevens' conviction.

Alaska's two current U.S. senators issued statements on the accident, before the identities of those killed were confirmed.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican, asked "Alaskans to join me in prayer for all those aboard the aircraft and their families."

Sen. Mark Begich, a Democrat, said his "thoughts and prayers are with those on board the plane and their families as we wait for more information."

CNN's Scott Thompson, Mark Morgenstein and Melanie Whitley contributed to this report.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/08/10/alaska ... 1&iref=BN1

Former NASA Chief Sean O'Keefe, Son Survive Alaska Plane Crash

By Tariq Malik
and Clara Moskowitz
posted: 10 August 2010
04:04 pm ET

This story was updated at 6:02 p.m. ET.

Former NASA chief Sean O'Keefe and his son are among the survivors of the fatal plane crash in southwestern Alaska late Monday that killed five people, one of them ex-senator Ted Stevens, officials with the defense contractor EADS North America have confirmed.

The plane was carrying nine people when it crashed Monday night near the town of Dillingham, Alaska, National Transportation Safety Board officials said. O'Keefe, who serves as CEO for EADS North America, was one of the passengers along with his son Kevin and Stevens.

"It was with a great sense of relief and gratitude that we learned that Sean, and his son, Kevin, survived the aircraft crash in Alaska. We extend our deepest sympathy to the families of those less fortunate in this terrible accident," said EADS North America chairman Ralph D. Crosby, Jr., in a statement. "We owe a debt of gratitude for the heroic efforts of the members of the rescue crew and others who rushed to the scene. We look forward to Sean's full recovery and his rapid return to EADS North America."

Earlier, the NASA watchdog website NASAWatch confirmed that O'Keefe's son was also on the plane and that both survived. According to NBC News, which cited a source close to the O'Keefe family, the former NASA chief suffered a broken pelvis and several other broken bones in the crash.

Reports of the O'Keefes' survival were received with relief by officials at the Louisiana State University – where O'Keefe served as chancellor after leaving NASA – among others.

"The LSU community is happy and relieved to learn that former Chancellor Sean O'Keefe and his son Kevin were found alive following their plane crash in Alaska," said current LSU chancellor Michael Martin in a statement. "Our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to everyone affected by this tragic event, and we send our deepest condolences to the loved ones of those lost in the crash."

Earlier today, a statement released by a Stevens family spokesperson said the 86-year-old former senator for Alaska had died in the crash, CNN reported.

A National Transportation Safety Board dispatched a team to investigate the crash and issued an announcement on the crash.

"At about 8:00 p.m. Alaska Daylight Time, a DeHavilland DHC-3T (N455A) crashed 10 miles northwest of Aleknagik, Alaska," NTSB officials said. "Reports are that 5 of the 9 persons on board died in the accident."

Rescue efforts were hampered by severe weather in the region near the plane crash, according to press reports.

Former NASA chief

O'Keefe served as NASA Administrator – the agency's top job – between 2001 and 2005. He was appointed by President George W. Bush and served as the 10th chief of the space agency.

O'Keefe was succeeded in 2005 by Michael Griffin, who led the space agency until 2009. The current NASA chief is Charles Bolden, a former space shuttle commander.

"We at NASA are deeply saddened by today's news that former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens and others were killed in a plane crash in Alaska that also injured former NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe and his son, Kevin," Bolden said Monday. "As a long-time supporter of NASA, Sen. Stevens made lasting contributions to our agency and our country. We at NASA mourn his loss and send our deepest condolences to his family, as well as the families and friends of all who perished in the accident."

Bolden said NASA as whole sends its wishes to O'Keefe, his son and the rest of their family.

Stevens served as a senator for Alaska until 2008, when he lost his re-election bid and was convicted on corruption charges, though the case was later thrown out, according to MSNBC. At the time he was the longest-serving Republican senator.

Condolences poured in for Stevens in honor of his long record with the Senate.

"A decorated World War II veteran, Senator Ted Stevens devoted his career to serving the people of Alaska and fighting for our men and women in uniform," President Barack Obama said in a statement. "Michelle and I extend our condolences to the entire Stevens family and to the families of those who perished alongside Senator Stevens in this terrible accident."

O'Keefe had a long friendship with Stevens that predated his tenure as NASA chief, and the two were longtime fishing buddies, according to the Associated Press and CNN.

NASA head office tenure

During his tenure at NASA, O'Keefe led the space agency through both triumph and tragedy. In February 2003, NASA's space shuttle Columbia was destroyed during its reentry to Earth. O'Keefe oversaw efforts to cope with the trauma and get the space agency back on track.

In January 2004, O'Keefe made the controversial decision to cancel a planned space shuttle mission to repair and upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope (that decision was later reversed by his successor, Michael Griffin, and the STS-125 Hubble servicing mission did fly in May 2009).

Under O'Keefe's leadership, NASA also successfully landed the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity on the Red planet in January 2004. Those spacecraft went on to become the longest running missions on Mars.

In honor of his service to NASA, an asteroid discovered in 2003 was named after O'Keefe – the space rock 78905 Seanokeefe (2003 SK85).

After resigning from NASA in 2005, O'Keefe served as chancellor of Louisiana State University.

Prior to heading up NASA, O'Keefe served as deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget, where he oversaw planning and management of the federal budget during the administration of President Bush.

Before that, O'Keefe was the Louis A. Bantle Professor of Business and Government Policy at the Syracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs in Syracuse, N.Y. He also directed the National Security Studies program, a joint department of Syracuse and Johns Hopkins University.

Earlier in his career, the first president Bush appointed O'Keefe as Secretary of the Navy in 1992. In 1993, President Bush and then Defense Secretary Dick Cheney presented him with the Distinguished Public Service Award.

Sean O'Keefe to Leave NASABolden Confirmed as NASA AdministratorNASA's New Direction

http://www.space.com/news/former-nasa-c ... 00810.html

My thoughts are who cares? Another corrupt bureaucratic politician bites the dust.

Originally Posted by dman1200

My thoughts are who cares? Another corrupt bureaucratic politician bites the dust.

I hate to admit it, but my thoughts were along those same lines. My heart has become very hardened to politicians because of the way they treat us with such callous disregard.

Originally Posted by SicNTiredInSoCal

Originally Posted by dman1200

My thoughts are who cares? Another corrupt bureaucratic politician bites the dust.

I hate to admit it, but my thoughts were along those same lines. My heart has become very hardened to politicians because of the way they treat us with such callous disregard.

As my condolences are to the family, I agree with you guys as well. I felt about the same when Kennedy died. Speaking of which, this is the longest time Kennedy has been sober!! Okay, I'm sorry, please don't kick me off. Ted Stevens will forever be remembered as the guy that pretended he knows what the internet is.

"It's a series of tubes!!"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8XSo0etBC4