On a Tuesday afternoon, March 2, 2021, 52-year-old Andrew 'Andy' Teuber, Jr. departed from Merrill Field in Anchorage, Alaska, piloting his blue and white Robinson R66 helicopter. He was the only person on board and was heading to his home in Kodiak. A family member reported him overdue when he failed to arrive at his destination. The last known radar contact with his helicopter, tail number N1767, was over the water near the Barren Islands, a notoriously challenging area for pilots
due to its unpredictable weather. At the time of his disappearance, weather conditions included winds gusting up to 21 miles per hour and temperatures just below freezing.
The day of Teuber's disappearance coincided with the publication of a news story detailing allegations of a coerced sexual relationship by a former assistant, which had reportedly led to his abrupt resignation from his high-profile positions as president and chairman of the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and from the University of Alaska Board of Regents the week prior. A witness who spoke with Teuber shortly before his flight told investigators he seemed 'distracted, and was not himself,' and that Teuber had expressed a desire to be in Kodiak with his family when the news story was published. He had just returned to Alaska from Las Vegas, where he had gotten married the day before.
The United States Coast Guard initiated an extensive search operation involving three helicopter crews, an HC-130 Hercules plane, and a ship, covering a wide area for over 13 hours. During the search, crews spotted a debris field in the Gulf of Alaska, about 65 miles northeast of Kodiak. The debris, which included a yellow float, was described as being consistent with the type of equipment on Teuber's helicopter. In the days following the initial search, an air charter operator located additional debris, which was recovered and identified as parts of the helicopter's float, landing skid, and fuselage. Despite these findings, Andrew Teuber, Jr. was never located. The Coast Guard suspended its search on the afternoon of March 3, 2021, pending any new information. The National Transportation Safety Board launched an investigation into the disappearance, and in a preliminary report, presumed Teuber to be deceased and the helicopter destroyed after impacting the ocean. The case remains a painful mystery, leaving family and community with unanswered questions surrounding the final moments of a prominent but troubled figure in Alaska.Last Seen: Mar 2, 2021
