Intensive Search Finds No Sign Of Missing Floatplane

[Phil Lilley]

A search for a floatplane that disappeared over the weekend in Southwest Alaska was expected to enter its fourth day today.

Searchers on Monday combed the mountains and Pacific coast in the Katmai National Park area but found no sign of the plane.

The de Havilland Beaver vanished Saturday during what was supposed to be a short trip across rugged terrain between Swikshak Lagoon and King Salmon. The plane carried pilot Marco Alletto and three National Park Service employees: Mason McLeod, 26, and brothers Neal Spradlin, 28, and Seth Spradlin, 20.

The intensive hunt follows a string of aircraft crashes that have killed at least 17 people since June 1.

More - http://www.adn.com/2010/08/23/1421158/search-continues-for-four-on-floatplane.html

Personal Note: I've flown with Branch River Air and with Sam Egli, the father of the Egli mentioned in the article. The mountain range they had to fly over to get to and from King Salmon to the Pacific coast is extremely rugged. Combine low visibility and wind sheer currents of wind in those mountains makes flying very dangerous. Hopefully they had a soft landing and are held up somewhere waiting to be found.

[Phil Lilley]

Debris from the plane carrying three National Park Service employees in Katmai National Park was located on the park’s rugged northern coast yesterday evening.

From the park Director: Katmai National Park Superintendent Ralph Moore called me last night to say that he was notified by a local helicopter pilot, Sam Egli, that he had spotted portions of the aircraft, including a section with identifying tail numbers, on a narrow section of beach northwest of Sukoi Bay. It appears that strong east winds have recently washed debris from the aircraft ashore. The single engine floatplane, a deHavilland Beaver operated by Branch River Air Service in King Salmon, carried the pilot and three National Park Service maintenance employees and has been missing since August 21. The NPS has conducted an exhaustive search for the missing aircraft, with over 60,000 miles flown. The area were the debris was spotted yesterday evening had been flown the day before by an NPS pilot.

The employees who were on board the aircraft were Mason McLeod, 26, and two brothers, Neal Spradlin, 28; and Seth Spradlin, 20. The pilot was Marco Alletto, 47, from King Salmon.

Egli reported to the park that there were no indications of survivors, although he was unable to land at the beach.

Katmai staff is meeting this morning with military search and rescue coordinators to develop a plan to safely reach and investigate the site.

Weather in the region is poor today.

At this time our thoughts and prayers are with the families who also learned of this last night as well as with Katmai's staff who are coping with the loss of their friends and co-workers.

As the site is investigated and more information becomes available, we will keep you informed.

*** Sam Egli is the pilot that flew Bill and I around last summer. He pilots a Bell-Jet Helicopter and has done allot of filming for the show, "The Deadliest Catch".