Full Notification

DATE/TIME: Tuesday, January 20, 2015

INCIDENT: Plane Crash

LOCATION: Approximately 10 miles northwest of Mountain Pass

VICTIM(S): Two deceased victims

SUMMARY: On Tuesday, January 20, 2015, Sheriff's Dispatch received a call regarding a missing Beechcraft Bonanza near Mountain Pass, east of Baker, California. The aircraft was enroute from California City, CA, to Henderson, NV, when contact was lost. Deputies from the Barstow Station and Sheriff’s Aviation responded to the area to search for any signs of downed aircraft. Deputies Jon Anderson and Carlos Quezada, the Night Desert crew in 40King3 responded from Apple Valley and searched for over an hour in poor weather. The crew did not pick up any emergency locator signals nor see signs of a crash site. Due to low clouds and deteriorating weather conditions, their search area was limited to the estimated flight path and extended to the foothills of Clark Mountain in the northern section of Mountain Pass.

On the morning of Wednesday, January 21, 2015, after confirmation from Henderson Airport that the Bonanza had not arrived, members of the Civil Air Patrol located a crash site in the upper elevation of the west side of Clark Mountain and notified Sheriff’s Aviation. Reserve Deputy Chuck Abney and Deputy Paul Kowalski, the Day Valley crew in 40K2, were already preparing to respond to the area to conduct a search. The crew located the crash site reported by Civil Air Patrol and observed portions of a downed aircraft that matched the paint scheme of the missing Bonanza. Due to the crash site's location in extremely steep and rocky terrain and 30-40 knot winds, Sheriff’s Air Rescue 306 also responded. AR306 with Pilot Sergeant Al Daniel, Crew Chief Corporal Mike Ells and SBCFD Paramedic Eric Sherwin responded to the scene with a member of the NTSB, an investigator from the Coroner's Division and a member of Sheriff’s Search and Rescue. The severe winds in the canyon prevented close inspection of the crash site from the air, and the difficult terrain prevented the hoisting of personnel into the crash site, even in low winds. This crash site was found to be old wreckage and unrelated to the current search.

On Wednesday evening, Sheriff’s Aviation was provided additional GPS coordinates from a SPOT Personal Locator Device that was onboard the missing aircraft. These coordinates were approximately 10 miles west of the original crash site on Clark Mountain. Deputies Ryan Conner and Carlos Quezada, in 40King3, responded to the coordinates and located a crash site with two deceased persons and a large debris field. Due to the remote location and darkness, Deputy Tommy Dickey, of Barstow Station, responded to the location to secure the scene.

On the morning of Thursday, January 22, 2015, NTSB and Sheriff’s Coroner personnel responded to the area with the assistance Barstow Search and Rescue to begin their investigation during daylight hours.
The Coroner will attempt to identify the deceased individuals and make family notification. The investigation is ongoing and updates will be provided as new information becomes available.

Refer: Sergeant Daniel Futscher

Station: Aviation Unit

Phone No. (909)356-3800

JOHN McMAHON, Sheriff-Coroner
San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner Department