Missing Plane and Pilot Located by Civil Air Patrol

The pilot was recovered by Oregon Guard helicopter from the 1042nd Air Ambulance Group from Salem Saturday at about 8:00 AM.

Photograph of downed Cessna 182 aircraft located in Southern Oregon by Oregon Civil Air Patrol air crew. Pilot was extracted by the Oregon Army National Guard later in the day Photo by Jerry Fulstone - Oregon Wing Civil Air Patrol

(DIAMOND LAKE, Ore.) - A Klamath Falls pilot who crashed his Cessna 182 airplane late Friday night was found alive by Civil Air Patrol pilots. The group launches aircraft to aid in the search of missing pilots and planes.

Oregon's CAP Wing was alerted to the report of a downed Cessna 182 in Southern Oregon west of Diamond Lake after the pilot reported around 11:00 PM that he was low on fuel.

Communicating with the Seattle Air Center, the pilot was advised to set his transponder to a certain frequency. This device sends out a signal that can be read by search crews to determine the location of a missing plane or boat.

The pilot was eventually unable to maintain altitude and crashed. Flying the plane with no one else aboard, he survived the crash into a snow filled ravine. CAP officials say he had survival equipment and a working satellite telephone. With intermittent satellite coverage, the pilot was able to call his wife and federal authorities and report his condition but not his location.

His plane's known point on radar was determined and Oregon Emergency Management was notified. the group requested the Civil Air Patrol to launch without delay. They took to the air at a little after midnight. Under the direction of CAP Capt. Bob Asher, three aircraft were quickly mobilized from Brookings, Medford and Troutdale.

By 2:00 AM, aircraft were enroute to the last known point.

At 3:22 AM, aircraft number 3615 flown by pilot Scott Bakker and air crew members Tom Moore and James Metcalfe located the downed aircraft. Unable to communicate by radio, the downed pilot and the CAP aircraft communicated via light signals. The downed pilot was also able to set off a road flare to mark his location.

Civil Air Patrol pilots remained over the scene until ground personnel from the Douglas and Jackson County Sheriff's offices and an Oregon Army National Guard rescue helicopter could arrive on scene.

A helicopter from the Oregon Guard helicopter recovered the pilot at about 8:00 AM. That aircraft is from the 1042nd Air Ambulance Group in Salem. The Douglas and Jackson Counties and the Klamath County Sheriff Office also assisted as the pilot was from Klamath Falls.

The mission involved 4 CAP aircraft with about 12 hours of flight, 5 sorties, about 100 man-hours and 17 personnel.