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Plane wreckage found in national forest

MARQUETTE — Aircraft wreckage from a plane initially reported missing on Sept. 14, 1997, was discovered in the Hiawatha National Forest Thursday, according to the Mackinac County Sheriff’s Office.

National forest personnel discovered the wreckage in a “remote location near St. Ignace,” said Eric Weiss, spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, the agency leading the investigation.

“According to the old report that was released, when it first disappeared, two people were on board,” Weiss said.

The Associated Press reports the 45-year-old pilot, Mark Davies, and his wife, Janet, were heading to Howell, about 300 miles to the south.

The wreckage was identified as a single-engine airplane, based on the registration number located in the wreckage, N939W. A Piper PA-28 airplane with a matching registration had been reported missing in 1997, according to officials.

According to the initial January 1998 investigative report on the search for the aircraft by U.S. Coast Guard, the aircraft, which was flying from Drummond Island, was reported overdue. An extensive search was initiated, but the plane was not recovered at that time.

The Coast Guard report also notes the pilot was flying without a flight plan and that the “pilot normally flies direct GPS and is also reported to get vertigo easily.”

The Mackinac County Sheriff’s Office and the NTSB had been notified of the aircraft wreckage discovery Thursday and responded to the site, with deputies and Hiawatha National Forest Personnel conducting a preliminary investigation, which was turned over to the NTSB, according to a press release from the Mackinac County Sheriff’s Office.

The NTSB is leading the investigation, with the cooperation of the Federal Aviation Administration, the airplane and engine manufacturers and the Mackinac County Sheriff’s Office.

According to the release, the NTSB is “currently assessing the location of the wreckage and the logistics necessary to respond and investigate the scene. The timing of the response to the scene has yet to be determined.”

Weiss said the first step will be removing the wreckage from the remote forest location.

“Once the wreckage is taken out of the forest in a place where we can access it, we would do a preliminary report seven-10 days after the investigation,” Weiss said, noting that the logistics and time frame of the wreckage removal is unclear.

The release further states “The Mackinac County Sheriff’s Office and the NTSB would also like to take this opportunity to offer its condolences to the family and friends of the victims of this accident.”

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