WILBER TWP, MI --
About 7:30 a.m. on Sept. 25, the Federal Aviation Administration contacted Iosco County Central Dispatch to report a missing plane. The dual-propeller King Air, 10-passenger plane had been en route to Kalitta Air in Oscoda and had left the Ypsilanti Willow Run airport earlier in the morning.
The craft was last observed on radar southwest of the airport at a rapid descent. Michigan State Police troopers, Oscoda Township police and firefighters, and Iosco County Sheriff's deputies searched the area.
At 10:27 a.m., ground crews found the plane's wreckage in Iosco County's Wilber Township, though its pilot was not present. The pilot, believed to be the lone occupant, is a 33-year-old man from Orlando, Florida.
FAA personnel are currently on their way to the crash scene for further investigation.
Officers from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the United States Forest Service also assisted at the scene.
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by ABC12 News Team
Tuesday, September 25, 2018
IOSCO COUNTY (WJRT) (9/25/2018) -
Authorities are investigating a plane crash near the former Oscoda-Wurtsmith Air Force Base northwest of Tawas.
The Michigan State Police say the Kalitta Air twin-engine propeller 10-seat charter plane was expected to arrive at the Oscoda air strip around 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, but it never landed.
The plane took off from Kalitta's headquarters at Willow Run Airport in Ypsilanti. Air traffic control radar last showed the plane making a rapid descent.
Kalitta Air is a worldwide charter and air cargo business with permanent operations at the Oscoda Wurtsmith Airport.
Michigan State Police Sgt. Pete McNamara told the Associated Press runway lights were activated at the airport by the pilot but no plane landed.
The Federal Aviation Administration contacted Iosco County 911 Central Dispatch about the missing plane around 7:30 a.m.
Police and fire crews spent hours searching for the missing plane before ground crews spotted the wreckage in a wooded area of Iosco County's Wilber Township around 10:30 a.m.
U.S. Air Force surveillance officers were able to ping the location of the plane to narrow the search area for rescuers on the ground.
A fire after the crash consumed most of the wreckage.
FAA spokesman Tony Molinaro told the Associated Press that the wreckage is a Beechcraft Super King Air BE20. The wreckage is about four miles from the Oscoda-Wurtsmith airfield.
Police believe only the pilot, a 33-year-old man from Orlando, Florida, was on board the aircraft. As of the early afternoon, investigators had not located the pilot or a body.
The FAA has launched an investigation into the crash, which likely will take several months to complete.
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USA, Oscoda, MI -
Narrative:
A Beechcraft 200 Super King Air, operarting as Kalitta Charters flight 85, impacted wooded terrain in Iosco County's Wilber Township, 4 miles from runway 6 at Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport (KOSC), Michigan, USA. The airplane was consumed by the post-impact fire and the sole pilot received fatal injuries.
Sources: » Flightaware flight track
» ABC 12
https://www.mlive.com
Status: Preliminary
Date: Tuesday 25 September 2018
Time: 05:51
Type:
Beechcraft 200 Super King Air
Operator: Kalitta Charters
Registration: N241CK
C/n / msn: BB-272
First flight: 1978
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-41
Crew: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Passengers: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0
Total: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Aircraft fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location: 6,4 km (4 mls) SW of Oscoda Wurtsmith Airport, MI (
United States of America) Phase: Approach (APR)
Nature: Ferry/positioning
Departure airport: Detroit-Willow Run Airport, MI (YIP/KYIP), United States of America
Destination airport: Oscoda Wurtsmith Airport, MI (KOSC), United States of America
Flightnumber: K985