Missing pilot found dead in WA plane crash
KING COUNTY, Wash. - Search and rescue crews have located a missing pilot and his aircraft near North Bend after he apparently crashed in a heavily forested area.
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) says crews discovered the crash site near Humpback Mountain around 1:30 p.m., just west of Snoqualmie Pass.
The pilot, 69-year-old Jerry Riedinger of Issaquah, was found dead inside the wreckage of his 2001 Extra Flugzeugbau 300/L. Riedinger was first reported missing by his wife around 6 p.m. on Sunday after he did not arrive at his destination in Ephrata.
He originally flew out of Arlington Municipal Airport on Sunday at around 4:30 p.m. and was last seen at about 6,500 feet in the air when connection was lost.
Riedinger was the only occupant of the plane.
WSDOT says cell phone and flight data led search and rescue teams to the area near Humpback Mountain off I-90. More than 220 people assisted in the search efforts on Sunday and Monday.
The King County Sheriff’s Office and National Transportation Safety Board are now investigating this incident.
Riedinger was a Seattle area attorney who loved flying planes. He was an experienced airshow pilot.
More top headlines from FOX 13 Seattle:
Woman seeks answers 45 years after mother's disappearance
Woman with hammer vandalizes 16 downtown Tacoma businesses
Suspect slammed worker's head into wall before being shot: 911
Helicopter carrying Iran's president crashes
SPD investigating 2 West Seattle drive-by shootings
Seattle mom urges water safety after losing son in drowning
Teen killed in shooting after group assaults man in Renton
Over 20 shoplifters caught in Gig Harbor retail theft sting
Costco price hike: Popular items see unexpected jumps in cost
To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX 13 Seattle newsletter.
Editor's note: The elevation the plane was last recorded at has been corrected.