Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- A Montana doctor killed when his plane crashed near Heber City last month had reversed course before the crash.
Dr. John C. Oakley, 60, of Billings was killed when the twin-engine Cessna crashed April 17 in the Uinta National Forest east of Heber City while on a flight from Billings to Cedar City.
Approximately two minutes before the crash, Oakley reported that his left engine had lost manifold pressure and that he required a lower altitude, according to a National Transportation Safety Board report.
After descending from 16,000 to 14,000 feet, the plane reversed course, radar indicated.
Oakley told air controllers he did that because of the bad engine, according to the report.
The controller then assigned Oakley a new frequency and he acknowledged the transmission. That was the last radio contact made, and the plane dropped off the radar moments later.
When the plane was found, "the wreckage distribution was consistent with a high-speed, nose-low impact," the report said.
The right engine and both propellers remained under 8 to 10 feet of snow as of Sunday, according to the NTSB, and would be recovered when conditions permitted.
The weather was overcast with light snow during the crash, the report said.
Oakley was a neurosurgeon at Yellowstone Neurosurgical Associates and the medical director of the Northern Rockies Regional Pain Center, both of which are affiliated with St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings. He was survived by his wife and three children.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
