Communications lag rattles relatives after plane crash On Friday as the couple from Minnetonka, Minnesota, were getting ready for their day, Judy Thompson flipped on the TV and heard about a sightseeing plane carrying cruise ship passengers that crashed in Alaska, killing all nine on board. The plane crashed on a cliff, 800 feet above a lake in steep, muddy and slippery terrain, said Chris John with the Ketchikan Volunteer Rescue Squad. Sally Andrews, a Holland America Line spokeswoman, said by email that the cruise company received "a small number of calls in our offices from concerned family members or friends."