[MilCom] Civil Air Patrol Aircraft Crash Additional Information

[Ken]

See a more detailed story at: 
http://www.stpns.net/view_article.html?articleId=53946493214335634

Reading the story --- It didn't appear that CAP itself had direct radio 
contact with the aircraft while it was flying the search mission.  CAP was 
not the prime agency responsible for the coordinating the search and it's 
unclear in the story whether the non CAP incident commander required 
specific radio checkin times, since the missing CAP aircraft wasn't 
discovered until after mission closure since the guy had been found. 
Probably would have been difficult based upon the terrain & aircraft search 
altitude to utilize CAP FM or the typical aero band radio communications 
systems.   Apparently the aircraft did talk briefly around 1600 hrs on 
Monday with a US Forest Service fire fighting aircraft....

Apparently when the plane crash & burned, the ELT transmitter did not 
activate, thus there was no SARSAT hit.  So technology doesn't always work 
the way it is suppose to!!

A USFS helicopter could not respond close enough to the area due to terrain 
& updrafts.

Again condolences to the families of these courageous volunteers as well as 
the members of Wyoming Wing CAP.

Ken