on the broadcast tonight, deadly crash in alaska. former u.s. senator is one of the victims in a small plane crash. what happened. the runaway toyotas, remember them? the latest tonight about a problem that badly tarnished one of the biggest names on the road. unlocking the mystery of alzheimer's. what a new test can tell us and what it can't. last straw, the man who became an overnight hero. that's not the end of the story. and the rat pack like you've never seen them before. and the rat pack like you've never seen them before. "nightly news" starts now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

information is still coming in tonight about who was lost in last night's plane crash in alaska. today it was confirmed that ted stevens was killed along with four others, but that former nasa administrator sean o'keefe and his son survived. the struggle for accurate information about this crash lasted throughout much of this day because it happened in such a remote area, more than 300 miles from anchorage, near a tiny town of dillingham. >> reporter: ann, good evening. this was a passing plane that spotted the wreckage and guided first responders to this remote scene. it took more than 12 hours for national guard and coast guard to get to the wreckage and medivac out the victims. among the five fatalities on board, senator stevens. the plane went down in a remote region, 320 miles southwest of

anchorage. among the five who died, ted stevens, the longest serving republican in the senate, also on board, former nasa administrator and navy secretary sean o'keefe who survived with his son, kevin. others on board include their friends and children. >> we are experiencing a tragedy. and as citizens of alaska, we have a long road of grief to walk. >> reporter: it was yesterday at 2:00 p.m. local when the plane departed from a fishing lodge bound for another lodge some 300 mile as way. just 20 miles northeast of dillingham, the plane went down. >> weather at the time, fog, low clouds and rainshowers. the mountains go up to about 2,500 feet. >> reporter: the plane that crashed is a workhorse in the alaskan wilderness. a dhc turboprop, capable of

landing on the water. the weather could figure into the accident. >> if there was rain or fog and it obscured a mountain, he could have flown himself into a mountain in high terrain which he couldn't avoid because he couldn't see it. >> reporter: there have been 958 accidents since 2000, with at least 159 deaths, veteran alaska back country pilot says weather is a constant threat, and reliable information hard to come by. we talked to him via skype. >> if the weather gets bad, you may have to turn around, closed in behind you, you can't get around any longer. >> reporter: in 1972, louisiana congressman hale boggs died in a catch. mark begich's father was

involved in a crash. the plane was owned by the gci corporation, a telecom and cable tv company and flying passengers between fishing lodges. ann? >> tom costello tonight, thanks. now to the scene of the crash which took first responders 12 hours to reach. jason lamb of ktuu has made his way there. what can you tell us? >> reporter: good evening, ann. we can tell you, just to get yourself situated, dillingham is 17 miles south of the crash site here in alaska. we are at the airport which has been the scene of a lot of activity today. we tried to get close to the scene of the plane crash, possibly getting into a helicopter and getting video of it. we were informed there's been a five mile no fly zone instituted, a lot of ntsb officials going around here tonight, images of their crash site are hard to come by. as far as survivors, we know

that four survivors were air lifted from a coast guard c-130 just a few hours ago, they've been transported to hospitals in anchorage, we don't know their condition at this hour. we're going to talk a little bit about the weather conditions that these folks had been facing, talk to any pilot here, and they will tell you how unpredictable the weather conditions can be, particularly in this section of alaska. we talked with one local pilot this evening who said, given last night's ceiling and visibility it was not safe to be flying out here. ann? >> jason lamb of ktuu, thank you very much for your report tonight. senator stevens had a long and significant impact on american politics, but not with controversy. he spoke about the risks of air travel in parts of alaska. andrea mitchell has more on his career. >> reporter: ted stevens was an institution in washington and alaska for four decades.

the longest serving republican senator. >> my motto has been here, to hell with politics, just do what's right for alaska. >> reporter: a decorated world war ii pilot first elected in 1968, stevens was loved and feared for his power as appropriations chairman. >> sometimes he would raise his voice against you. but he was a gentle person. a very soft-minded one. >> reporter: it was a time when senators worked across party lines as recalled today by a fellow world war ii veteran, daniel inouye. >> he would come to hawaii to campaign for me and i would do the same in alaska. >> reporter: in a terrible twist of fate, stevens survived another plane crash in 1978 that tragically killed his first wife, ann as reported by david brinkley on "nightly news." >> senator ted stevens, republican of alaska was injured in another plane crash in

anchorage that killed his wife and four others. >> reporter: two years later, stevens married his second wife katherine. >> he was jovial, he loved life, he was full of vigor and life. kathy enlightened his life. the tragedy was that his first wife was killed in an airplane crash. >> reporter: then political scandal, ethics charges for allegedly failing to report gifts and home renovations from contractors, leading to a conviction that cost him his final election. a conviction overturned a year later on grounds of the prosecutors' misconduct. >> then to lose the election and be completely exonerated, i didn't sense a bit of bitterness in him. >> god bless the senate and every member of this body. i yield the floor for the last time. >> reporter: after aa former colleague died in a plane crash, ted stevens said, every time you go up, there is a chance you won't come down.

tonight president and mrs. obama issued a statement of condolence, praising stevens for his service to the people of alaska and to our men and women in uniform. ann? >> andrea mitchell tonight, thank you. there's also news tonight about a story we covered on this broadcast for many weeks, the massive recall of toyotas, once considered one of the safest names on the american road, then forced to explain thousands of cases offed is acceleration. >> this is huge, and here's why. remember earlier this year when toyota recalled more than seven million vehicles? the company blamed it on two things, sticky gas pedals and the possibility that floor mats could trap the gas pedal. all along, critics said it could be the electronics. today investigators came out and said, listen, the problem does not go beyond the gas problems. in other words, electronics are not the issue.

>> what does this do to all those lawsuits that were filed by people who charged or were talking about sudden acceleration? >> those continue. and that's still a huge problem for toyota. the issue with those lawsuits, what did toyota know, what do they tell people sooner? >> it doesn't go to the actual cause. turning now to politics, it's primary night in four states, georgia, minnesota, connecticut and colorado. and there are a lot of interesting cross currents at work in both parties. kelly o'donnell is live in denver with a look at a couple high profile races. good evening. >> reporter: good evening, ann. just take a look at colorado, and both parties desperately want the senate seat here, have you two presidents and the tea party each backing different candidates. those different candidates have something in common, they all want to be seen as the outsider. democrat michael bennett never expected to be colorado's senator.

but he's scrambling to keep the job now. >> we have worked as a team from day one. >> reporter: bennett actually had zero political experience until he was appointed to fill a vacancy last year. president obama had gone all out ah, peering in person and in tv ads. >> michael is a different kind of leader. >> it's a tough year to be an incumbent. it's a great year to be someone who's never had their name on a ballot. and i have never had my name on a ballot until right now. >> reporter: but another candidate backed by president clinton vows to stay out of the race. andrew romanoff slammed bennett's investment background with a barrage of tough tv commercials. >> he's had almost no money. he had to sell his house to buy his final ad. that's a hungry candidate. >> reporter: and hungry describes republicans, this is a seat they can win.

jane norton is up against the tea party choice, ken buck. >> i don't have experience in the legislative branch. i don't have experience compromising, i'm a prosecutor. >> you once worked for dick cheney, doesn't that make you connected to washington in some way? >> it did in 1986, it doesn't today. >> reporter: that outsider title plays big all across the country. in connecticut, linda mcmahon, has spent $22 million from her own fortune against former congressman rob simmons. the connecticut republican will face democrat richard blumenthal in the fall. here in colorado, the way they're voting is different. this is the first ever mail-in ballot primary. just about all across the state there was no waiting in line at the polling places, they simply sent it in by mail. ann? >> kelly o'donnell tonight. thanks. now to the hundreds of wildfires, many burning out of control in russia. fuelling a dangerous thick smog

in moscow during a relentless heat wave. the u.s. government is evacuating much of its embassy staff and urging americans to postpone travel to russia. as jim maceda now reports, the kremlin is trying to battle the fires, and the perception that it's not doing enough to put them out. >> reporter: it was a photo op he couldn't resist. vladimir putin criticized for being too slow to respond to the disaster below was seen on national tv today co piloting a firefighting plane, scooping up and dumping 24 tons of water on his target. did we hit it, he asks? yes, a precise hit, the reply. despite putin's and thousands of firefighters' efforts, the wildfires rage on. already causing some $15 billion in damage, according to one russian daily. only now after weeks of devastation is the human toll beginning to emerge. in moscow alone, shrouded in

smog and smoke, deaths according to a top health official here have doubled compared to last year, up to about 700 a day. moscow's morgues are reportedly filled with bodies, and ambulances are making thousands more trips to the hospital. strokes and asthma attacks are up by 50%. heart attacks have increased by 30%, said this doctor. the government blames mother nature and the hottest summer ever recorded for what could be thousands of deaths. this is no secret, look, it's 100 degrees in the street, he says. these people have come to catch their breath in one of only dozens of specially air conditioned centers in a city of 11 million blame the kremlin. we're shocks at the deaths and we're angry, but we can't do anything about it, says this russian. with virtually no opposition, the kremlin doesn't seem too concerned about the plilt faoli fallout from the wildfires as long as putin is seen as hands on and the man in charge.

jim maceda, nbc news, moscow. that new test for alzheimer's, just how much does it really tell us? and later, the fed up flight attendant who's fast becoming a folk hero. announcer: if we all lived here we wouldn't have to worry about what's in our water. but most of us live here. so we need the brita pitcher. for healthier, clean tasting water. until the combination of three good probiotics

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so i'm glad boniva helped me stop losing and start reversing. ask your doctor about boniva today. (announcer) to get one month free, plus more tips and recipes, visit boniva.com or call 1-800-4-boniva. last night we told you about a spinal fluid test, and new research suggesting it could be highly accurate identifying patients with memory loss, who go on to develop alzheimers disease. tonight we've asked robert bazell to dig a little deeper and tell us exactly what this test can really do and what it can't. the new test will help doctors know better which patients with serious memory problems have alzheimer's disease, and which might have other diseases that might be

treated. but despite some reports, the test results will not help doctors predict which healthy patients will get alzheimer's in the future. >> i think we owe it to our patients not to jump the gun and to propose that we now have a diagnostic test. >> the test uses a spinal tap to remove a portion of the cerebral spinal fluid that circulates to the brain. doctors measured proteins known to be associated with alzheimer's. in the latest study, people with alzheimer's had a 90% positive rate, it was 72% in those with a prealzheimer's condition, and positive in 36% of older people with no memory problems. the big question is whether those who have normal memories and a positive test will go on to develop alzheimer's disease. scientists say the only way to know is to follow those people for up to ten years. >> we don't know what that predictive value is for people who are healthy.

we know for people who have alzheimer's disease and minor cognitive impairment. we don't know how to predict the future for people with normal cognitive findings. >> reporter: robert bazell, nbc news, seattlseattle. when we come back, never before seen photos that may make you want to say ring-a-ding-ding. it's just so frustrating. the middle of this special moment and i need to run off to the bathroom. i'm fed up with always having to put my bladder's needs ahead of my daughter. so today i'm finally talking to my doctor about overactive bladder. [ female announcer ] if you're suffering, today is the day to talk to your doctor

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today president obama signed a bill that will send $26 billion federal to strap ped states to save jobs of firefighters and teachers who otherwise may have been laid off. the bill was passed in a party line vote. republicans criticize the vote calling a handout to teachers' union ppz. the federal reserve kept the main interest rate near zero. that's aimed at keeping interest rates low for businesses and consumers who want to borrow. the move reflects the central bank's concern about whether this economic recovery is sustainable. the former white house social secretary who left washington has a new job,

des'ree rogers has been named ceo of johnson's publishing company. today life.com released remarkable photos that never have been made public to mark the 50th anniversary of the original "ocean's 11." the movie made famous "the rat pack." one photo shows us old blue eyes -- yes, that is frank sinatra, about to give himself a shave in a hotel steam room. coming up next, the flight attendant who blew his top after a passenger drove him nuts. it seems just about everyone in america is on his side. we speak mpg. sure, but do we speak hybrid? yes, we do. and we can say over 700 miles on a single tank and 41 mpg city,

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finally tonight, the last straw moment that a lot of people identify with. they are saying that they get where jet blue flight attendant was coming from when he deployed that inflatable evacuation slide and bailed out on his job. chris jansing has more on steven

slater under arrest tonight, but also a new hero to the fed up masses. >> reporter: even as he was being led off in handcuffs, steven slater seemed to be smiling. overnight he had gone from being an obscure flight attendant to an american folk hero. >> anyone who's had a bad day has wanted to do something like this. >> reporter: according to passenger accounts, at some point slater was hit in the head with a piece of luggage a passenger was trying to retrieve. instead of apologizing, the passenger kurlsed him. the two argued, then slater left loose with a profanity laced rant over the intercom, pulled open the emergency evacuation shoot, grabbed a beer, and slid off the plane, headed for his car and unemployment. >> he was smiling, he was happy he was done with his job at jet blue. >> reporter: it's a far cry from the glamour days of air travel. >> we wore white gloves, hats,

and certainly we would never talk back to a passenger. >> all that now just a distant memory for today's frequent flyers who see slater as a new-aged howard biehl. this story is taking on a life of its own, making headlines in newspapers across the country and setting social networking sites on fire. countless supporters tweeting not just that he's a hero, but one promising to craft an american flag using slater's face in place of every star, still, he's in a lot of trouble. officially charged with felonies. depraved indifference to human life. reckless misconduct which created a grave risk to another person. until his next court date, slater's slash on his forehead is a modern day badge of honor

to beleaguered flyers everywhere. that is our broadcast for this tuesday night, in for brian williams, i'm ann curry. for all of us here at nbc news, thank you and good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com