Aviator Spent Two Days In Woods
A pilot is out of the
woods, literally, after being rescued by the Alaska Air National
Guard’s 210th Rescue Squadron on March 1. Ted Greene, an
Anchorage resident in his mid-70s, called in a mayday report after
his plane crashed and was hung up in a clump of trees in the
Skwenta area, about 60 miles northwest of Anchorage on Feb. 29.
The plane, a Piper PA-15, went down shortly after Mr. Greene
dropped off snow machines at Toehead Lake. The mayday, originally
heard by a commercial aircraft crew, was garbled. The
identification of the aircraft could not be deciphered, and there
was no emergency locator transmitter signal. Alaska Air National
Guard’s Rescue Coordination Center officials directed the
launch of a 210th Rescue Squadron HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter and
an HC-130 Hercules rescue tanker. Pararescuemen from Kulis Air
National Guard Base in Anchorage were aboard the aircraft.
The two aircraft flew search patterns for six hours into the
early morning of March 1 before returning to Kulis ANG Base because
snow and rain made rescue flights unsafe. The 210th Rescue Squadron
launched a Pave Hawk helicopter at first light March 1 and located
the downed aircraft in their initial daylight search. Mr. Greene
was rescued at about 8:33 a.m. "(Before) launch this morning, we
had Air Guard and Civil Air Patrol on standby," said Maj. Rick
Watson of the RCC. "We had three to four civilians with snow
machines who volunteered to do ground searches. We had tremendous
volunteer support."
Mr. Greene was taken to Providence Medical Center for evaluation
and is listed in good condition. "It’s a positive way to
start a Monday off with a rescue," said Maj. Mike Haller, a Guard
spokesman. "We are very thankful Mr. Greene is home safe with his
family, and that the Alaska National Guard could be of
assistance."
Here is the initial report filed by the NTSB
representatives.
**************************************************
**
Report created
3/2/2004
**
**************************************************
IDENTIFICATION
Regis#:
4492H Make/Model:
PA15 Description: PA-15
Vagabond
Date: 02/29/2004
Time:
Event Type: Accident Highest Injury:
None Mid Air: N Missing:
N
Damage: Substantial
LOCATION
City:
SKWENTNA
State: AK Country: US
DESCRIPTION
ACFT CRASHED ENROUTE TO MERRILL FIELD ARPT ANCHORAGE (MRI) AND
SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE. OTHER CIRCUMSTANCES ARE
UNKNOWN. SKWENTNA, AK
INJURY DATA Total
Fatal: 0
# Crew: 1 Fat:
0 Ser:
0 Min:
0 Unk:
# Pass: 0 Fat:
0 Ser:
0 Min:
0 Unk:
# Grnd:
Fat: 0 Ser:
0 Min:
0 Unk:
WEATHER:
UNKN
OTHER DATA
Activity: Pleasure Phase:
Cruise Operation: General
Aviation
Departed: ANCHORAGE, AK
MRI Dep
Date: 02/29/2004 Dep.
Time:
Destination: ANCHORAGE, AK
MRI Flt Plan:
NONE Wx Briefing:
N
Last Radio Cont: UNKN
Last Clearance: UNKN
FAA FSDO: ANCHORAGE, AK
(AL03)
Entry date: 03/02/2004
Classic Aero-TV: The Switchblade Flying Car FLIES!
See All