 August 11, 2008
Two Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk search and rescue crews from Air Support Facility Cordova and Air Station Sitka will arrive in Juneau this morning and expand on the existing search area if the weather improves. Additionally, an Army National Guard Blackhawk helicopter, Alaska State Troopers and the Civil Air Patrol aircraft are assisting in the search. Coast Guard Station Juneau will be conducting water shoreline searches throughout the day. The Coast Guard is searching a 1,000 square mile area stretching from Mansfield Peninsula to the north and the northern section of Glass Peninsula to the south and an area west of Juneau to Hawk Inlet. Rescue crews have been searching through heavy patches of fog and scattered rain showers throughout the weekend which have limited the efforts. The Coast Guard and other search and rescue aircraft are saturating the designated search area and reccommend the public contact the Coast Guard before attempting personal searches and notify the Coast Guard of any possible sightings of the missing aircraft. Brian Andrews, 56, and Brandon Andrews, 24, never returned from Young Lake after leaving Juneau at approximately 3:45 p.m. Saturday. Both men are reportedly experienced pilots. A family member reported the overdue aircraft to the Federal Aviation Agency who then reported it to the Coast Guard early Saturday evening. Brian Andrews, 56, and Brandon Andrews, 24, both pilots living in Juneau were last seen wearing hip waiters and inflatable lifejackets and are both 6-feet tall with blonde hair. Brian Andrews is the Deputy Commissioner for the Alaska Department of Revenue. The two men were returning from a camping trip at Young Lake and had just dropped off a family member and camping gear at approximately 3:45 p.m., before heading back to Young Lake to pick up more gear. The flight was expected to last no longer than 40 minutes round-trip. The son who had been dropped off earlier in Juneau waited two hours before reporting the overdue aircraft to the Federal Aviation Agency who then reported it to the Coast Guard. The float plane flown by the Andrews family is a Cessna-182 and is white with red and silver trim. The tail number of the plane is N9350X. If anyone has any information concerning the whereabouts of Brandon and Brian Andrews please notify the Coast Guard at 907-463-2991.
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