Darrell Ward dead: Ice Road Trucker star dies in Montana plane crash

Ward was reportedly on his way to film a pilot for a new reality series about recovering plane wreckage

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Darrell Ward, a star of the History Channel reality programme Ice Road Truckers, was killed in a plane crash in Montana. He was 52 years-old.

The Missoula County Sheriff’s Office identified Ward – a Deer Lodge native – and a second victim, 56-year-old Mark Melotz on Sunday.

“It’s with great sadness to report we have lost our Montana Legend at the young age of 52,” a press release posted to Ward’s Facebook page said.

The crash occurred as the pilot appeared to be landing the Cessna 182-D on a Rock Creek County airstrip when “something went drastically wrong,” said Sheriff’s Capt Bill Burt. “The plane was trying to climb and appeared to have stalled.”

The Associated Press reported that eyewitnesses saw the plane tear through a stand of trees.

According to the press release, Ward was traveling to Missoula to film a new documentary series about the recovery of airplane wreckage before he and his co-pilot crashed.

The National Transportation Safety Board is conducting an investigation of the crash.

Ward had recently learned that Ice Road Truckers had been renewed for an 11th season, which was scheduled for filming during Winter 2017.

“When Darrell wasn’t hitting the Ice Roads, he would be back in Montana doing what Darrell loved best as a log hauler and occasionally helped local authorities fight forest fires,” the statement said.

A self proclaimed "Adrenaline Junky", Ward joined the show in its sixth season. He was known to give back to his community, the statement announcing his death said, and he reportedly ran a food drive for the victims of the Louisiana floods.

Ice Road Truckers premiered on the History Channel in 2007. It featured harrowing trips made by truckers on seasonal routes, braving the elements across frozen lakes, rivers, and mountains in Arctic territories in Alaska and Canada.

The series was an immediate hit for the channel, as it received record high viewership at the time and rave reviews.