Passenger dies after Eatonville-based biplane goes missing on way to Oregon airshow

A WW II-era biplane that departed from a private airstrip in Eatonville Friday afternoon crashed 70 miles away, killing the passenger and injuring the pilot, according to multiple authorities. The plane was missing for several hours until it was located by a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.

The 1943 Stearman Kaydet , a two-seater plane, was piloted by Christopher M. Paulson, 72, of Eatonville, according to the Skamania County Sheriff’s Office.

Sometime after departing Eatonville, the Stearman joined a formation of two other planes headed to the Annual Hood River Fly-In at the Hood River Airport.

“They separated for some reason and the other two continued on and landed at Hood River,” said state Department of Transportation aviation emergency services manager Tom Peterson.

When the other pilots landed at Hood River and reported the plane missing, Peterson was contacted, he said. He then traced the plane’s route and contacted the U.S. Air Force Rescue Coordination Center . Using flight tracking data, Peterson determined the plane crashed about 1 p.m., approximately 12 miles northwest of Stevenson, Wash.

An air crew stationed at Coast Guard Air Station Astoria was dispatched to search for the missing plane, according to USCG spokesperson Petty Officer Briana Carter. Meanwhile, volunteers from the Volcano Rescue Team and the sheriff’s search and rescue team, along with medics from North Country Emergency Medical Services, responded to the area.

Rescuers searching the forest heard faint cries for help near Sunset Falls campground, according to sheriff’s office search and rescue coordinator Sgt. Ryan Taylor.

“The pilot was able to self-extricate himself from the downed aircraft,” Taylor said. “He was very unstable on his feet.”

At that point, search crews still had not located the plane, due to the thick forest in the area, he said. However, the USCG MH-60 helicopter crew found the plane nearby at the 3,000-foot elevation.

Coast Guard rescue personnel were lowered to the ground and placed Paulson in a rescue device, hoisted him into the helicopter and flew him to Portland International Airport around 7 p.m., Carter said.

“They transferred him to waiting emergency medical services there,” she said.

Ground crews found the passenger deceased at the scene. In the Stearman, the passenger sits in front of the pilot, Peterson said.

The passenger was identified as Jed Paul Kelly, 45, of Eatonville.