Tag Archives: Hale Boggs

FTA: The Boggs/Begich Mystery: The Disappearance of Cessna N1812H



Plane crashes are far too common in Alaska, and many of these accidents are due, at least in part, to poor weather conditions. If commercial pilots refused to fly in marginal weather, though, they would not make money because the weather is often bad in Alaska. For those of us who live or work in remote areas, we must fly in small planes, and we can’t always pick our weather. Mysteries abound in Alaska about airplanes that took off and were never seen again. The following is a story of one of the most famous airplane disappearances in the history of the state.

Sources:

Alpert, Bruce. “Author writes about disappearance of plane carrying Hale Boggs 43 years ago over Alaska.” June 16, 2015. Nola.com.
Glass, Andrew. “Hale Boggs’ plane vanishes in Alaska.” October 16, 1972.

Politico. https://www.politico.com/story/2016/10/hale-boggs-plane vanishes-in-alaska-oct-16-1972-229692

Liefer, Gregory P. 2011. Aviation Mysteries of the North. Chapter 16: “Accident or conspiracy?” Publication Consultants: Anchorage.

“New podcast Missing in Alaska takes on 50-year-old mysterious plane disappearance.” May 21, 2020. Inside Radio.

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Robin Barefield is the author of five Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, Karluk Bones, and Massacre at Bear Creek Lodge. She has also written two non-fiction books: Kodiak Island Wildlife and Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier. Sign up to subscribe to her free monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.

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Congressmen Hale Boggs and Nick Begich Disappear in Alaska



On October 16th, 1972, a Cessna 310 with the tail number N1812H operated by Pan Alaska Airways disappeared somewhere between Anchorage and Juneau, Alaska. The plane was piloted by Don Jonz, 38, the chief pilot for Pan Alaska. Jonz was a military veteran with more than 17,000 hours of flight time. The passengers on the plane were Alaska Congressman Nick Begich, 40, his aide Russell Brown, 37, and Louisiana Congressman Hale Boggs, 58, the U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader. The three men were planning to attend an election rally for Begich in Juneau.

Was the disappearance due to an accident or something far more sinister?

References include:

Forty years ago yesterday, Hale Boggs, a powerful Democratic congressman with a colorful past, disappeared in a small plane over Alaska

New Details Uncovered in 1972 Disappearance of Congressman Hale Boggs

Hale Boggs’ Plane Vanishes in Alaska: Oct. 16, 1972

Author Writes About Disappearance of Plane Carrying Hale Boggs 43 Years Ago Over Alaska

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Robin Barefield is the author of three Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, and The Fisherman’s Daughter. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.