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Pilot found dead amid wreckage after plane disappears near Snoqualmie Pass – KIRO 7 News Seattle

ARLINGTON, Wash. – The search for a plane that left Arlington Airport on Sunday and never reached its destination is over.

The Washington State Department of Transportation said around 1:30 p.m. it discovered wreckage near Humpback Mountain, west of Snoqualmie Pass.

The pilot, Jerry Reidinger, 69, was found dead in the plane.

On Sunday evening, WSDOT was informed that a 2001 Extra Flugzeugbau 300/L piloted by Riedinger departed Arlington Municipal Airport on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. The tail number was 22 MW.

Riedinger’s wife reported him missing around 6 p.m. when he failed to reach his planned destination in Ephrata.

Crews searched overnight in the air and on the ground.

A 50-person ground search was conducted on Monday, along with an aircraft searching from the air.

WSDOT was told Riedinger was carrying a parachute and the aircraft had a new 406 MHz emergency transmitter, but there was no communication from the aircraft and no distress signals.

Riedinger was the only known person on the plane.

The accident investigation is now being conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board.