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The plane is missing in an area of the southern Washington Cascades, near Rimrock Lake.
Skydiving community stunned
SEATTLE - Yakima County crews are searching for a plane reported missing on a flight between Boise, Idaho and Shelton, Wash.
The Cessna Caravan had 10 people on board, returning from a skydiving get together in Boise, according to Tom Peterson of WSDOT Aviation and Shelton Airport officials.
The names of those on board have not been released, but Farrington says their families have been notified.
Peterson says a hunter reported hearing a plane crashing sound after dark Sunday.
Geoff Farrington, the owner of Kapowsin Air Sports, which owns the plane, says he called the FAA around 10:30 p.m. Sunday night when he realized the plane was late.
KING 5 News has learned the pilot and nine skydivers are members of the Snohomish Parachute Center. They leased the plane to fly to Boise for what is called in skydiving circles as a "boogie."
The plane had been reconfigured to transport people, including putting the seats back in.
Farrington says Kapowsin Air Sports, a family-owned company that's been around for more than 60 years, has never lost a plane.
The names of those on board have not been released, but Farrington says their families have been notified.
The Department of Transportation aviation division is coordinating the air search and the Yakima Sheriff's Office is coordinating the ground search, which is being focused south of White Pass.
A command post has been set up at Yakima Airport.
Last edited by vagabond : 10-08-2007 at 01:34 PM.
Reason: added video link
Sorry, I know this is not a skydive or jump pilot forum but I just wanted to inform some of you in our tight knit community of a missing jump plane and search going on in Washington. My thoughts and wishes are with my missing friends.
WHITE PASS, Wash. -- Two airplanes from Yakima and a helicopter from the King County Sheriff’s Department are conducting a search for a missing plane near Rimrock Lake, west of Yakima in the central Washington Cascades.
Federal Aviation Administration officials said the plane was due to land in Shelton at midnight on Sunday. Authorities organized a search at about 2 a.m.
Elaine Harvey, owner of Skydive Snohomish, said at least nine of the people on board the missing plane are part of the skydiving club based at Harvey Field in Snohomish.
The aircraft is owned by Kapowsin Air Sports based in Shelton. The co-owner, Geoff Farrington, told KIRO that Skydive Snohomish asked him to borrow the Cessna 208B Grand Caravan to attend the Caravan Boogie skydiving event in Star, Idaho, over the weekend. Farrington said there were 10 people from Skydive Snohomish were scheduled to be on board but does not know how many were actually aboard the aircraft.
The names of those on board have not been released, but Farrington said their families have been notified.
Officials said the plane disappeared from radar screens at about 8 p.m. on Sunday.
Authorities said a hunter in the White Pass area told police he saw a plane flying low and heard a crash around 8 p.m. Sunday.
Nisha Marvel of the Washington Department of Transportation said the search area has been narrowed to southwest of Rimrock Lake due to the hunter's report and radar information. The Transportation Department is coordinating the air search, while Yakima County Search and Rescue is coordinating a ground search.
It is now 10:36 pm in Seattle and they have found the wreckage. No information as to survivors, however. My thoughts and prayers are with them, their families and the searchers tonight.
YAKIMA, Wash. - After an air search in the Central Washington Cascades wrapped up for the night, it was confirmed that ground searchers found the wreckage of the plane carrying nine skydivers and a pilot, missing since Sunday evening.
The Yakima County Sheriff's Office located the wreckage of a missing aircraft at approximately 7:40 p.m. The Tacoma Mountain Rescue team had been smelling fuel, which led them to the missing aircraft. The tail section was separated from the rest of the plane and has not been located.
Searchers are still looking for survivors.
A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman says the Cessna 208 Grand Caravan left Star, Idaho, near Boise, on Sunday evening en route to Shelton, Wash., but never arrived. The plane was returning from a skydiving meet in Idaho when it disappeared.
The Cessna 208 Grand Caravan left Star, Idaho, near Boise, around 7 p.m. Sunday en route to Shelton, Wash., but did not arrive as scheduled, said Mike Fergus of the Federal Aviation Administration. The plane was past due at midnight, and authorities organized a search for it at about 2 a.m., he said.
Local skydiving community in shock, but joining the search
Radar shows the plane was at about 13,000 feet when it reached the Tieton River valley. The plane then turned around 360 degrees, then lost about 7,000 feet per minute before it disappeared.
"We don't know if that means mechanical or engine trouble, or maybe trying to get below some clouds," said search coordinator Tom Peterson.
Eight aircraft, including two helicopters and 50 volunteers searched in an area Monday south of White Pass, along the north fork of the Tieton River, southeast of the White Pass Ski Area.
The search area is only about 5 miles from the White Pass ski resort, but it's a wilderness with plenty of challenging terrain - a perfect place to lose a plane. Search and rescue teams on the ground from Pierce, King and Yakima counties are being flown into a snowy area and dropped off known as Shoe Lake.
"We're going to do a visual search. We're going to fan out and we'll be looking for anything that's out of the ordinary. Any survivors. Any parts of the plane. Any broken branches," said Jeff Sharp, Tacoma Mountain Rescue.
"The terrain is very tough. A lot of downed timber. A lot of elevation gains. A lot of rock bluffs, peaks, you name it, it's here in the valley. Heavy timber, which provides great ground cover if you happen to fall into it, and that's what we think happened," said Jim Hall, Yakima County Emergency Management.
Also hampering the search could be the weather. KING 5 Meteorologist Jeff Renner says there will be cool and dry weather in the search area Monday night with temperatures in the mid-to-upper 30's and moderate winds. On Tuesday, there will be increasing rain and winds at 35-45 miles per hour with decreasing visibility.
The skydivers were from Skydive Snohomish, but the plane belongs to Kapowsin Air Sports in Shelton.
A hunter reported seeing the plane flying around at about 8 p.m. Sunday. He then heard what sounded like the engine being revved up, as if it was trying to gain power. He then heard the distinctive sound of a crash.
The director of the Office of Emergency Management notified the passengers' family and friends at the White Pass Lodge. Yakima County Search and Rescue is coordinating the recovery efforts. The FAA and NTSB has been notified.
Family members of the passengers can call Red Cross Family Support at 509-834-2660
Monday, October 8, 2007 - Page updated at 11:09 PM
Seven bodies found in Cascades plane wreckage
By Christina Siderius, David Postman, Diane Brooks and Brian Alexander
Seattle Times staff reporters
Searchers late tonight found seven bodies among the wreckage of a plane that was carrying skydivers from the Snohomish area. The search for three others aboard was continuing.
The aircraft was reported missing on a flight from Star, Idaho, to Shelton, Mason County, Sunday night.
There were nine skydivers and pilot on board the aircraft; the Yakima County Sheriff's Office sent a news release about 10 p.m. that said search and rescue crews were "arranging for the removal of the occupants of the plane." Officials said the search for the three people still missing would continue in the morning.
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