Dave O sent this article about this veteran pilot who had many years of experience mountain flying who it seems was killed recently in an accident in the mountains - while flying:
Sparky Imeson flying low before accident
By Alton K. Marsh, from www.aopa.org, March 27, 2009
Sparky
Imeson, the pioneering mountain flying instructor who died in the crash
of his Cessna 180 on March 17, may have been involved in low-level
flying prior to the accident. A preliminary NTSB report bases its statement on a witness who saw an aircraft similar to that flown by Imeson.
“The witness stated that the tops of the wings were below the power
lines and he estimated the airplane was 20 - 30 feet above the ground
traveling at a high rate of speed,” the NTSB report states. “He added
that the airplane was low enough, it spooked a heard of elk near the
airplane’s flight path. The witness continued watching the airplane as
it pitched upwards and to the left, making a 180-degree turn near the
Kelly Gulch area to a southerly heading. He added that as the airplane
pitched upwards, he was able to see the tops of the wings. The witness
further stated that he stopped watching the airplane to continue
observing the trespassers.” Imeson’s aircraft had taken off from
Bozeman, Mont., with Helena as the intended destination, the NTSB
report said.
The witness observed the aircraft from a point about two miles
northeast of what later was the Imeson accident site. The witness
stopped watching the aircraft before the accident....
As the weather gets nicer we pilots are certain to be conducting our own mountain flying excursions in the U.S. Pacific Northwest and around British Columbia in the coming months. The lessons in this video from the U.S. Department of Transportation from 1975 still apply! Click the video image to jump to the source.
We can get ourselves into mountain flying situations very quickly in our area - such as a flight from Portland to Seattle - cutting the corner east around the McChord restricted area for example. Those flying around Vancouver Island, (Qualicum Beach :), or to Tofino have plenty of examples.
The sad accident last year that occurred near Mt. Vernon on Sunday, during the return from our Orcas Island Fly-in is another example.
Flight schools and FBO's most likely have some kind of mountain flying awareness courses - many sadly may not be very good quality. There are lots of sources on the internet for learning and refreshering and there is the famous mountain flying school in McCall, Idaho too.
I hope CF members will send in a few photos and some little blurbs this year of their own mountain flying experiences for posting to our our website.