Search Crews Locate Missing C340, No Sign Of Survivors | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-07.07.25

Airborne-NextGen-07.08.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.09.25

Airborne-FlightTraining-07.10.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.11.25

Mon, Feb 11, 2008

Search Crews Locate Missing C340, No Sign Of Survivors

Plane Disappeared Into Clouds Last Wednesday

Crews searching for a missing Cessna twin that disappeared last week near Banning Pass in southern California came across the wreckage Saturday, but found no sign any of the four persons onboard the plane survived the impact.

The Palm Springs Desert Sun reports the Cessna 340 (file photo of type, right), tail number N354TJ, disappeared Wednesday afternoon, shortly after taking off from Bermuda Dunes Airport (UUD) near Palm Springs, bound for Chino.

The last radar contact from the aircraft came at 1339 PST Wednesday, about nine minutes after the plane left Bermuda Dunes. "The last radar reading puts them in the San Gorgonio Pass," said Chino police Lt. Al Cheatham. "They were also seen by occupants of another plane going into a bank of clouds."

The aircraft was reported missing by family members Wednesday night. On Saturday, crews onboard eight fixed-wing aircraft scoured an area on the north side of San Gorgonio Pass. A helicopter crew located the wreckage late Saturday afternoon, and was able to verify the tail number, said Sgt. Dennis Gutierrez of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department... but weather precluded a closer investigation.

"We are concerned because the storm came in that night and Sunday," Cheatham said. "Snow was already reported 10 to 12 feet deep in some places above 7,000 feet elevation, and the storm dumped more snow." Crews hoped to be airlifted to the accident site Sunday.

The wreckage was found about 1.5 miles from where the plane was seen entering the cloud bank, said Civil Air Patrol Capt. Andrea Binder, and about one mile north of the I-10 freeway. There is no immediate evidence of an IFR flight plan filed for the plane's tail number.

Family identified those onboard the missing plane as Michael Bybyk, 75; Joyce Bybyk, 70; Alvin Baker, 79; and Gail Pugel, 68. The aircraft was owned by the Bybyks.

FMI: www.faa.gov, www.cap.gov

Advertisement

More News

NTSB Final Report: Aviat A1

Airplane Bounced About 3 Ft Then Touched Back Down And Then, With No Brakes Applied, The Airplane Began Veering To The Left Analysis: The pilot entered the airport traffic pattern >[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (07.08.25)

Aero Linx: British Microlight Aircraft Association (BMAA) The primary focus within all aviation activity is SAFETY. In all aspects of our sport SAFETY must come first, whether it b>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: Fly Corvair’s Reliable Engine Alternative

From SnF25 (YouTube Edition): William Wynne Builds Practical Aircraft Engines on the Corvair Platform Seeking an affordable alternative to the traditional aircraft engine options, >[...]

ANN FAQ: Contributing To Aero-TV

How To Get A Story On Aero-TV News/Feature Programming How do I submit a story idea or lead to Aero-TV? If you would like to submit a story idea or lead, please contact Jim Campbel>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: CiES Fuel-Quantity and e-Throttle Systems Praised

From 2023 (YouTube Edition): Bridge of CiES CiES Inc. is a Bend, Oregon-based designer and manufacturer of modular embedded aircraft systems and sensors. The company’s fuel-l>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC