LOCAL/STATE NEWS
Plane crash kills two
The Times-News and
The Associated Press
The Cessna 208 from Salmon-based Salmon Air crashed and
caught fire at about
The single-engine plane was flying to Hailey from
There were no survivors and the victims haven't been identified, Ramsey said.
A cause for the crash near State Highway 20 hasn't been determined, he said, adding it was snowing when the plane went down in an area surrounded by mountainous terrain.
National Transportation Safety Board officials are expected to begin investigating the crash site today.
A professional pilot who flew over the wreckage shortly after impact described the plane as a turbine-powered propeller aircraft known as a Caravan and used as a cargo hauler.
DEV MUKH KHALSA/
Firefighters investigate the scene of an airplane crash
Monday where it landed in a field south of
Ramsey said Salmon Air is a charter service that often carries air freight for United Parcel Service. Ramsey did not know what was aboard the Cessna when it crashed. Sheriff's deputies were guarding the scene Monday but heavy snow was expected to cover it, adding to the difficulty of the post-crash investigation.
2 killed in plane crash
By MATT FURBER
Express Staff Writer
Firefighters from
Burning air express packages told most of the story of why
Bellevue Triangle residents saw unusual smoke Monday morning in the sky just
south of
A Cessna 208 Caravan cargo plane owned by Salmon Air and
under contract to the United Parcel Service crashed and burned about
The pilot, Fred Villaneuva, 60, of
Only pieces of the prop and a wheel were visible from behind the fire line separating the public from the smoldering debris.
"It's not discernable. You can't tell what it is. It's just in pieces," said Friedman Memorial Airport Manager Rick Baird, describing the scene of the crash to a caller on his cell phone. He said the plane was on approach for a landing at the airport and the manifest for the flight showed no hazardous materials on board.
The FAA reported the plane, on an instrument flight plan
from
Weather at the time in the area included cloudy skies with a visibility of about six miles.
Mikel transported the bodies from
the accident scene Tuesday to
National Transportation and Safety Board investigator
Deborah Eckrote arrived at the scene Tuesday from
Fire fighting crews from
Wood River Fire and Rescue Chief Bart Lassman
finally cleared the scene at
The single-engine turboprop crashed about 100 yards from a farmhouse and narrowly missed irrigation pivots.
"I was out feeding the horses. I thought it was somebody burning something," said John McClatchy, of Picabo.
A spokesperson for Salmon Air confirmed the loss of a plane.
Several customers called the Hailey UPS Store with tracking numbers to see if next day air packages had arrived, said Ryan Vossler, an employee at the Hailey store.
"We've had several calls from people looking for their
next day air packages," Vossler said. He said
the store receives nine to 10 air packages a day from the UPS hub in
"We expect delivery to the store between
The high-wing, single-engine Caravan, still in production, first flew in the 1980s as a successor to aging aircraft such as the Beaver, Otter and other Cessna aircraft. Since the mid-1980s, some 1,200 Caravans have been manufactured, with 108 of them involved in accidents that took 238 lives. When configured for passengers, it can carry 14 persons at 200 mph speeds at altitudes of up to 27,000 feet.
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Article Last Updated:
Pilot died doing what he loved, family members say
Probe into Cessna crash continues: The
By Lisa Rosetta
The Salt
Whether on land or in the sky, Fred Villanueva was a passionate man.
A decorated Vietnam War veteran and avid ham radio operator with connections around the globe, Villanueva was, above all else, a pilot who loved his job.
"It was the freedom," said his son, Matthew Villanueva. "It was getting away from all attachments and being above it all."
Fred Villanueva, 60,
was the pilot of a Salmon Air Cessna 208 that crashed about
The single-engine
plane, bound for
Villanueva left his
job with Burbank, Calif.-based cargo service Ameriflight
two months ago to work for Salmon Air, a commuter air carrier based in Salmon,
said his wife, Bobbie Villanueva. The couple, who were married 31 years,
transferred to
Villanueva received
his private pilot license as a young man. With the help of the GI Bill, he
furthered his aviation education at Gillespie Field in
Villanueva was drafted but was a conscientious objector who refused to bear arms during the conflict. Instead, he worked as an Army medic, and was awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart for pulling a soldier out of a tank even while his platoon came under heavy fire. Villanueva was struck by shrapnel during the rescue but continued assisting his comrades, said his son, Matthew.
Villanueva, who was
also a member of the Civil Air Patrol in
Canyon
Helicopters. Mark is an air traffic controller in
"Taking family trips in the airplane as a child - that makes an impression," Matthew Villanueva said. "You just think it's the coolest thing in the world."
Now every time he
traverses the vast spaces of the
"I don't know if I'll ever fly again without thinking about it," Matthew Villanueva said. "He died doing something he absolutely loved and that's got to be a peace of mind for anyone who enjoys what they do."
On the ground, Fred Villanueva was an avid ham radio operator for 30 years, said his wife.
The son of a Filipino man and Puerto Rican woman, Villanueva loved connecting with people around the globe, she said.
This month he will be featured in a ham radio club newsletter.
"Hundreds of ham radio operators have phoned in" since her husband's death, Bobbie Villanueva said.
Villanueva is
survived by four children and two grandchildren. He will be interred at
"He just loved flying," his wife said. "It was his passion. It's what he always wanted to do. It's what made him happy."
lrosetta@sltrib.com
LOCAL/STATE NEWS
Plane crash kills two
The Times-News and The Associated Press
A charter airplane crashed near
The Cessna 208 from Salmon-based Salmon Air crashed and
caught fire at about
The single-engine plane was flying to Hailey from
There were no survivors and the victims haven't been identified, Ramsey said.
A cause for the crash near State Highway 20 hasn't been determined, he said, adding it was snowing when the plane went down in an area surrounded by mountainous terrain.
National Transportation Safety Board officials are expected to begin investigating the crash site today.
A professional pilot who flew over the wreckage shortly after impact described the plane as a turbine-powered propeller aircraft known as a Caravan and used as a cargo hauler.
DEV MUKH KHALSA/
Firefighters investigate the scene of an airplane
crash Monday where it landed in a field south of
Two were killed.
Ramsey said Salmon Air is a charter service that often carries air freight for United Parcel Service. Ramsey did not know what was aboard the Cessna when it crashed. Sheriff's deputies were guarding the scene Monday but heavy snow was expected to cover it, adding to the difficulty of the post-crash investigation.
Deadly crash may be linked to ice buildup on plane
wing
Farmington pilot, co-worker were killed in
By Michael N. Westley
The Salt
The type of airplane that crashed near Salmon,
The U.S. National
Transportation Safety Board and
A "safety recommendation letter," the culmination of more than a year and a half of review, is expected to be released next week, said NTSB spokesman Paul Swan.
The Cessna 208B also is the subject of at least two icing-related lawsuits filed against Cessna Aircraft Co. and operators of the aircraft. The Chicago-based Nolan Law Group says more than 50 people have died since 1990 in Cessna 208B crashes in which icing was a factor.
Pilot Fred
Villanueva, 60, of Farmington, and co-worker Raymond Ingram, 32, of Salmon,
died Monday when their Cessna 208B, owned by Idaho-based Salmon Air, crashed
about 10:30 a.m. The plane had departed
The plane was
purchased new in 2001, said Salmon Air president JoAnn
Wolters. It was the first plane the company purchased
new and was its only Caravan, she said. Salmon Air is a passenger and cargo
service that operates its 11-plane fleet in
"We are just a mom-and-pop operation that has grown up over 24 years. This has been a blow to the great people that work with us," Wolters said.
NTSB investigators
were on the scene of the
"We're still working on gathering all the facts," she said.
Icing conditions - cold temperatures and cloudy skies - were reported at the time of the crash, Eckrote said.
The National Weather Service reported clouds, light snow and temperatures in the low 20s at the Salmon airport Monday morning.
Though the Cessna 208B meets the minimum standards set by the Federal Aviation Administration for flying in icing conditions, the plane is vulnerable to ice buildup on the wings, said Nolan Law Group attorney Tom Ellis, whose firm represents the families of victims in four Cessna 208B crashes.
Nolan Law Group to
date has filed lawsuits in
A civil complaint
filed earlier this year claims that the
was
killed when his plane went down in
A lawsuit filed in
July alleges that a
Ellis said he and his colleagues are "trying to effect a change to this aircraft in the interest of public safety." He said "it's a shame" the Cessna Aircraft Co. has not earlier addressed the problem, which he said was first discovered in the early 1990s.
"Why do we have to wait for the pain of the federal government to make the change?" he asked.
A spokesman for Cessna declined to comment on the lawsuits or Ellis' allegations.
As ice builds up on the wings, the friction that creates lift from the air going over the top of the wing is reduced, which can cause the plane to lose airspeed and, in extreme conditions, stall, according to a supplemental pilot safety and warning manual produced by the Cessna Corp.
"The best course of action is to avoid icing conditions," the manual states.
Wolters said Villanueva was properly trained to fly the 208B and was aware of the procedures necessary for flying the Caravan in icing conditions.
According to the
FAA, there are 584 Cessna 208Bs licensed in the
Other than concerns about icing, the Cessna 208B has an excellent flight record, pilots say.
"It's a terrific single-engine airplane," Harmon said. He acknowledged, however, that the plane has too many unprotected areas to sustain flight in moderate to heavy icing conditions.
"It can happen instantly, but you train for it," Harmon said. "We have enough experience with it to accept the limitations of the airplane."
Crash cause unknown
Too early for investigators to draw conclusions
By MATT FURBER
Express Staff Writer
As investigators completed the on-site investigation Tuesday
of the Dec. 13 airplane crash just south of
Salmon Air pilots Fred Villanueva, 60, of Farmington, Utah, and co-worker Raymond Ingram, 32, flying in a Cessna 208, both died in the crash that occurred at about 10:20 a.m. Monday in Bill Sherbine's field about 8 miles south of Friedman Memorial Airport, said Coroner Russ Mikel.
Villanueva, the pilot in charge of the flight, was making a
delivery under contract for UPS to the Hailey airport from
It is too early to determine the cause of the crash, but
evidence from the crash scene has been secured in
"It was obvious that it crashed from uncontrolled attitude," Eckrote said, adding that eyewitnesses said they saw the plane wobble before it hit the ground.
Eckrote said she has interviewed other pilots who were flying at the time to learn more about weather conditions and will study the remains of the aircraft in more detail. She also said she has more interviews to complete and radar data to review before she can deliver a final report of facts to the National Transportation and Safety Board. She said she must also wait for aircraft maintenance records and Villanueva's pilot record, including health records. And autopsy and toxicological reports must be completed before NTSB can determine probable cause, a decision expected to take several months.
"We have a little bit of every thing, but not enough to draw conclusions," Eckrote said. "I have completed interviews with the control tower. It is sounding like normal procedures were followed. There were no emergency calls from the pilot."
Although Villanueva and Ingram were just hired by Salmon Air within the past year, the aviation community has been hit hard by the loss of the pilots, Wolters said.
"Fred is well-known in the flying community. We knew
Fred in
Villanueva's wife of 31 years, Bobbie, told the Salt Lake Tribune that until going to work for Salmon Air two months ago, Villanueva worked for Ameriflight, a Burbank, Calif.-based cargo service.
The paper also reported that Villanueva was a conscientious
objector who refused to bear arms during the conflict in
Already a private pilot, Villanueva continued his aviation
training at Gillespie Field in
Villanueva is survived by his wife and two sons, Matthew, a
Ingram was raised in northern
In 1998 Ingram attended flight school at
His wife Julie Beth, his son Grant and his parents Joe and Ramona Ingram of Rangely survive him. Julie Beth is pregnant with their second child.
"We are working with the widows and children and trying to do the best we can," Wolters said.
An UPS spokesman said delivery contracts with Salmon Air are continuing and the company is working with shippers to replace any goods that were destroyed in the crash.
Investigators on Tuesday sift through the rubble of a
single-engine Cessna 208 aircraft that crashed south of
"We have one witness who saw the aircraft in a nose-down attitude and wings wobbling. And then it hit the ground," Eckrole said.
Another witness who heard the crash and several pilots who viewed the crash site also will be interviewed as part of the investigation, Eckrole said.
Eckrole said her agency will issue a preliminary report within five days. But she conceded it won't show much -- just that the aircraft was cleared to land and that radar contact with it was lost.
Since the single-engine Cessna 208 was a commercial aircraft, there are far more records to check and verify as a part of the investigation than there would be with an accident involving a private aircraft, Eckrole said. Three to six months may pass before the National Transportation Safety Board will issue a probable cause for the accident.
The aircraft, owned by Salmon Air Taxi of Salmon, was carrying United Parcel Service freight when it crashed.
Eckrole said investigators may be
able to tell more when they get what's left of the aircraft to
"I can kind of do a mock reconstruction just to see if there are any signatures on the aircraft that I can use to better verify the attitude and angles of attack the aircraft had when it collided with the ground," she said.
The wreckage, in the back of a pickup truck and filling a
20-foot trailer, will be taken to
Originally published
By
Times-News correspondent
Blaine County Coroner Russ Mikel
identified the pilot as 60-year-old Fred Villanueva of
Officials with the National Transportation Safety Board began their task Tuesday of trying to determine why the Cessna Caravan cargo plane went down. Senior Air Safety Investigator Debra Eckrole said the aircraft was operating normally before contact with it was lost.
The aircraft departed from
"They reported inbound to the tower and everything
sounded normal," Eckrole said. "I just
listened to the tape, and everything sounded like normal communications. They
eventually lost air traffic communication with the aircraft at
The airplane crashed moments later.
The windblown crash scene, a hundred yards south of
Former Kodiak pilot dies in
Article published on
By JACOB BROOKS
Managing Editor
A former Kodiak pilot died in a plane crash in southcentral
Raymond Ingram, formerly employed by Island Air, was on board the single-engine Cessna 208 went it down during a snowstorm.
Authorities on Tuesday identified Ingram and one other
person who died near
“We got the call (Monday) night,” said Island Air chief pilot Mike Gerber. “We’re pretty shook up about it.”
Ingram, 32, worked for the Kodiak airline March 2003 to January 2004.
Gerber said Ingram was a “good pilot. He was cautious.”
According to the Idaho Statesman, the plane’s pilot was
60-year-old Fred Villanueva, of
However, according to the FAA report on the crash, three people, all of whom died, were listed on board the plane.
The single-engine Cessna 208 was owned by Salmon Air, out of
Salmon,
It was flying to
The National Safety Transportation Board is investigating the crash. A call placed to NSTB investigator of the crash has not been returned.
Ingram’s wife, Julie, worked for the Kodiak Daily Mirror as an ad builder while the couple lived here. They have one child.
Jacob Brooks can be reached via e-mail at jbrooks@kodiakdailymirror.com.