NTSB: Pilot and passenger were not FAA certified before fatal crash in Southwest Alaska lake [Video]

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – A preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board states that two men who were killed in a plane crash in a Southwest Alaska lake last month were not properly certified when their plane went down.

Alaska State Troopers originally reported that the bodies of 58-year-old Dave Hedgers and 45-year-old Aaron Fryar were recovered from the wreckage of a Taylorcraft BC12-D after it was found upside down in the water.

The NTSB prelim report said the pilot had recently purchased the plane before taking off for the flight from Port Alsworth to Nondalton on May 17.

The report stated the duo departed the Port Alsworth Airport around 11:30 a.m. but were reported overdue by 8 p.m. that evening. Troopers said they were notified around 9:30 p.m. of the aircraft in Six Mile Lake near Nondalton.

The NTSB reported that neither man owned a pilot certificate with the Federal Aviation Administration, nor had an FAA student …