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Student Pilot Survives Crash, Freezing Night Before Rescue

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

AP

BILLINGS, Mont. —
A student pilot whose plane crashed into a snowy mountainside survived a freezing night by wrapping himself in a tarp, then hiked a mile through waist-deep snow in shorts to meet rescuers, aviation and rescue officials said Wednesday.

The student, whose name was not released, crashed about 40 miles south of Billings on Tuesday night and was rescued about 11:30 a.m. Wednesday. He was taken to a Billings hospital with hypothermia but did not appear to have any major injuries, said Jon Trapp, one of the pilot's rescuers.

"He ended up hiking quite a ways in his shorts and tennis shoes, in waist-high snow. He was very cold and cut up by the time we found a place to land and could hike into him," said Trapp, assistant coordinator of Carbon County Search and Rescue.

The small plane crashed into a forested slope on Big Pryor Mountain during a solo training flight from Billings to Pryor, Wyo.

The Rocky Mountain College student stayed with the 2006 Piper through the night. With overnight temperatures dropping close to zero, Trapp said, the student wrapped himself in an orange tarp to keep warm, and also was wearing a jacket and wool cap.

Rescuers on the ground had searched for the student through the night, but Trapp said the Federal Aviation Administration initially gave them coordinates that were about eight miles off.

The student used a cell phone to call his flight instructor about 9 a.m. to report he survived the crash with a dislocated shoulder and other minor injuries, said Mike Fergus, a spokesman for the FAA's Northwest Mountain Region in Seattle.

Though it was not immediately clear why a call had not been made earlier, cell phone service in the area is spotty.

The pilot started to hike out after he was spotted by rescue planes, around the time he reached the flight instructor.

Dan Hargrove, director of aviation for Rocky, could not be reached immediately for comment.

About 100 students are enrolled in Rocky's 10-year-old aviation program, which offers degrees in aeronautical science and aviation management. The Billings-based program has a fleet of eight Piper and Beechcraft planes.

I think this is a good illustration of what not wear on a flight. I know someone who was on a flight into Jackson Hole that slid off the runway at the end of February. Passengers evacuated via the slides, down into snow that was at least waist deep at times. At least one passenger was in shorts and sandals. That person had a cold walk back to the runway.

Sounds like other than that, this person did not handle the aftermath of the crash too terribly. Wonder why he did not call sooner.

Scott O'Grady (remember Bosnia?) mentioned that his one significant foul-up is that his dress was not appropriate to the climate. He had left his jacket and weather gear back at base. He repeated that his instructors repeatedly told him to "dress to egress." Could be useful words to bear in mind...

With today's materials, it's pretty hard not to bring extra clothing. A waterproof shell, a wool shirt, some mitts, and a cap take up very little space and any combination of those things could really save ones life.

Yea extra clothes would have been good. Probably a good idea to know the terrain and climate of areas you are going to fly over and then to pack for it a little. Although most of us here have to take a lot of the items we always have with us off to get on a plane. I know I do, and I feel naked doing so. Most times when I get up from a chair I pat myself down to make sure it’s all there. I tend to feel somewhat uneasy when any item is missing. And it’s all missing when I’m on a plane.

Glad the guy came out of it for the most part unharmed.

Just plain stupid. At least he had the opportunity to "live and learn" and be a model to others of "don't let this happen to you" slogan. Seems we are getting more and more of those these days.

Good points on clothing. I like the training quote from O'Grady's instructors. Another version I've seen is "dress to survive, not just arrive!".

In the last few months I came across Peter Kummerfeldt’s survival web site:

http://www.outdoorsafe.com/index.htm

and I've found his philosophy of pre-planning and simple/small/lightweight but effective equipment that is ALWAYS carried with you to be very sensible.

Anyway, to the point of this thread ... he says "Dress to survive not just to arrive!". I think of that often when heading out on local winter car drives. I tell my kids to think about whether they are dressed warm enough to stand outside for a few hours if we get into an accident.

Part of the curriculum should be exactly that: Dress to survive. When I was in Alaska my friend and I would go sightseeing in a small airplane occassionally (he was the pilot). I always had my 44 mag with me and some food. He had his firearm, food, and a sleeping bag. The sleeping bag was required. Back to the flying school. They should require each student to bring in a "crash bag". It doesn't add that much weight. He's lucky to be alive. They should now put him on a poster at the school as an example of who not to act like.

That is the part that baffles me somewhat. The student obviously had the forethought (or just luck, I guess) to bring a warmer jacket and cap. But, he didn’t bring long pants?