After Olympic National Park Plane Crash, Pilot Finds Cell Service

OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK, WA - A pilot who crashed his small plane into the side of a mountain in the Olympic National Park on Wednesday morning was able hike to the summit and call for help with his cell phone, according to the state Department of Transportation.

The pilot crashed around 8 a.m. Wednesday near the summit of Mount Angeles, a 6,500 foot peak at the north end of the park. The pilot was injured, but was able to hike to a peak to call authorities and confirm he had crashed.

At the same time, the pilot's plane's emergency beacon alerted state authorities. WSDOT officials scrambled a Navy helicopter and park rangers to rescue the pilot. The Navy chopper was able to reach the pilot by around 9 a.m. The plane had a strong 406 megahertz beacon, which allowed search crews to find the white plane easily, even in the snow.

"Given the terrain and heavy snow, locating the plane visually would have been much more difficult and time-consuming. If the pilot had been seriously injured or unconscious, precise location details are even more vital," WSDOT spokeswoman Barbara LaBoe wrote in a blog post Friday about the rescue.

The pilot arrived at a hospital in nearby Port Angeles by about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Image courtesy WSDOT