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Five people, including the richest man in the Czech Republic, were killed on a heli-skiing tour on Saturday when their helicopter crashed near a glacier in Alaska, officials said.
Czech billionaire Petr Kellner, whose net worth was estimated at $ 17.5 billion by Forbes, was aboard the Airbus AS350 B3 helicopter when it crashed near the Knik Glacier, the Knik Glacier reported on Sunday. lodge which chartered the plane.
Mr. Kellner, 56, was killed, along with another guest from Tordrillo Mountain Lodge, Benjamin Larochaix, also from the Czech Republic; two of the lodge guides, Gregory Harms and Sean McMannany; and the helicopter pilot, Zach Russel, officials said.
One survivor has been listed in serious but stable condition, according to the Alaska State Troopers, who said the National Transportation Safety Board would conduct an investigation to determine the cause of the crash. Emergency responders said they were informed at 10 p.m. on Saturday that the helicopter had not returned from an excursion and that debris from an accident had been observed near Knik Glacier.
The crash was the latest mishap for an extreme sport with little margin for error that has become a magnet for thrill seekers. Flights to remote mountains, playgrounds of unspoiled powder, are known for their high prices and risks.
The lodge, which offers weekly packages of $ 15,000 per person for shared accommodation and heli-skiing charters, expressed its sadness over the accident in a statement Sunday night.
“This news is devastating for our staff, the community in which we operate and the families of the deceased,” the lodge said. “In 17 years of operation, this is the first time that we have to face an event of this magnitude.”
A representative for the lodge, located in Judd Lake, Alaska, said she did not know what caused the crash. Officials said the helicopter was operated by Soloy Helicopters in Wasilla, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The lodge confirmed that it chartered the flight.
According to the lodge, Mr. Kellner was a frequent guest and friend of the resort.
Mr. Kellner made his first fortune in the 1990s after setting up an investment fund, which he used to buy a controlling stake in the country’s largest insurance company.
In October, it acquired a major European broadcasting network, Central European Media Enterprises, for $ 1.1 billion, raising fears in the Czech Republic that the network would lose its independence. But in a statement released at the time, Kellner said the acquisition was motivated by “a sense of responsibility” and vowed the network would retain its objectivity.
Its investment company, PPF Group, has also donated millions of respirators and masks and thousands of coronavirus test kits and swabs to help the Czech Republic in the pandemic, Czech media reported.
He was married and a father of four, according to his company’s website.
According to the lodge, Mr. Harms, 52, was a pioneer guide in the Alaskan heli-skiing community and operated his own tour business, Third Edge Heli. Mr McMannany, 38, had been a guide for more than 10 years and was an avalanche instructor, the lodge said.
Details regarding Mr. Larochaix, 50, and Mr. Russel, 33, the pilot, were not immediately available.
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