On the evening of January 29, 2019, 30-year-old Stacie Rae Morse, a dedicated flight nurse, was on board a Guardian Flight medical aircraft that disappeared near Kake, Alaska. The twin-engine King Air 200, with tail number N13LY, was en route from Anchorage to Kake to transport a patient. Along with Stacie, the flight was crewed by 63-year-old pilot Patrick Coyle and 43-year-old flight paramedic Margaret Langston.
Stacie, who was also a nurse in the emergency department and critical care unit at Bartlett Regional Hospital, was 26 weeks pregnant with her first child. The aircraft was expected to land at 6:19 p.m., but it never arrived.
The United States Coast Guard initiated a search for the missing aircraft and its three crew members. Debris from a plane was discovered in the water approximately 22 miles west of Kake, near the southern tip of Admiralty Island in Chatham Straight. The search efforts continued for 63 hours before being suspended. Tragically, the bodies of Stacie, Patrick, and Margaret were never recovered. The wreckage of the King Air 200 was later located and recovered from the waters of Frederick Sound at a depth of about 500 feet. The National Transportation Safety Board investigated the incident, but the cause of the crash could not be definitively determined. The investigation was hampered by the fact that the cockpit voice recorder had not been functional since 2015.
The loss of Stacie Morse, along with her colleagues, was a profound tragedy for their families, friends, and the close-knit Juneau medical community. Stacie was remembered as an intelligent and adventurous person who was passionate about her work and serving her community. She was eagerly anticipating motherhood and had chosen the name Delta Rae for her unborn daughter. In her memory, a scholarship fund was established to support aspiring nurses. The investigation into the crash concluded it was a loss of control for reasons that could not be determined based on the available information. A wrongful death lawsuit filed on behalf of Stacie's fiancé was later settled out of court. The case serves as a somber reminder of the risks faced by air ambulance crews who provide critical medical services in remote areas.Last Seen: Jan 29, 2019
