2 Minnesotans Among 10 Killed In Seattle-Area Plane Crash

September 6, 2022

Site Staff,

MINNETONKA, Minn. (FOX 9) – A Minnesota couple were among the 10 people killed when a seaplane crashed near Whidbey Island in Washington on Sunday.

Rebecca and Luke Ludwig were killed when the plane went down. UnitedHealthCare, which is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, confirmed to FOX 9 on Tuesday Rebecca Ludwig works for the company and was on the plane.

According to social media, the couple had two young children and lived in Excelsior.

Rebecca Ludwig’s brother Kyle Hosker released a statement to FOX 9. saying: “We have nothing to share at this time, other than we are coping with this tragedy with overwhelming support from family, friends, and a loving community. We ask that the media respect our family’s privacy and allow us to deal with our losses without future media attention or prominence.”

The U.S. Coast Guard on Tuesday released the names of the 10 people onboard the plane:

Pilot Jason Winter
Patricia Hicks
Sandra Williams, an activist who founded Black Lens New
Lauren Hilty
Luke Ludwig
Rebecca Ludwig
Remy Mickel, a minor
Ross Mickel
Joanne Mera
Gabrielle Hanna

“The Coast Guard offers its deepest sympathies to those who lost a loved one in this tragedy,” Cmdr. Xochitl Castañeda, the Search and Rescue Mission Coordinator for this incident, said in a statement on Tuesday.

The National Transportation Safety Board is handling the investigation into the plane crash. It’s unclear what led to the crash, but on Tuesday the Coast Guard revealed the owner of Northwest Seaplanes, the group that operated the charter flight that crashed, noticed a slight shift in the plane’s direction compared to the flight plan.

The company attempted to contact the pilot but couldn’t connect. That’s when Northwest Seaplanes called emergency responders, and Good Samaritans began calling 911 near Mutiny Bay, off the coast of Whidbey Island, to report the plane crashed nose first, at a high rate of speed. According to the Whidbey Island Fire Department, people miles away from the site reported hearing the loud bang.

The U.S. Coast Guard suspended its search for victims on Monday. A woman’s body was recovered on Sunday and was brought to the coroner. She has yet to be positively identified.

Authorities did say debris from the plane, a de Havilland DHC-3 Otter, will likely continue to wash ashore in the coming days. So far, a few parts of the plane and a few personal items have been found.

FOX 13 News in Seattle contributed to this report.