Denali Justice

In mid-December, 1981, a small air taxi crashed at 10,300’ on the slopes of Mt. McKinley in Denali National Park, Alaska. All four people aboard survived the crash and the wreckage was quickly located. The weather was good the next morning but no rescuers landed nearby and no emergency supplies were airdropped.

During the second night high winds dislodged the wrecked fuselage and it slid downhill towards a 2000’ cliff. After four days and nights, a volunteer civilian climbing team reached the wreckage and survivors were airlifted off the mountain.

Two years later, a lawyer in solo practice in Alaska filed a civil suit arising from the Mt. McKinley rescue against the Army, Air Force, Federal Aviation Administration, and National Park Service. This true story of the crash, ordeal on the mountain, and rescue unfolds through testimony at trial.

“Denali Justice shows why this tragic episode in Alaska’s aviation history is so important. The book is an important read both for its legal drama and the intricate manner in which the trial investigated this rescue operation” - Alaska Dispatch News (April 2015).