body of pilot found say officials – UPDATE

Body Found Of Man Thrown From Plane – UPDATE

Man Thrown From Plane

A man is dead after he was thrown off a plane over the skies of Tennessee during a flight lesson on Friday. The man, who has yet to be identified, was taking a flying lesson with an instructor near Hamilton county on Friday afternoon, when they experienced significant turbulence, causing the plane to rapidly descend.

The turbulence was severe enough to rip the canopy off the small two seater plane. While the instructor was able to bring the plane under control, the passenger, who was not wearing his seatbelt, was ejected from the aircraft and plummetted over 2,500 feet to the ground. After the pilot safely landed, a general location was pinpointed, and a search for the victim ensued. After several hours of searching, rescue workers with the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Department recovered the victim’s body approximately eight miles away on Saturday afternoon.

The aircraft, which was being flown in the incident, is a Zodiac 601, which is often utilized for flight lessons and is thought to be a relatively easy plane for beginners to learn how to fly on. Neither the flight instructor, nor the passenger, were wearing seatbelts. This incident is now being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.

Student Pilot’s Body Found after Falling from Plane

A pilot in Tennessee fell 2,500 feet to his death Friday March 29th when a canopy malfunctioned on his small engine plane, a Zodiac 601 model. The plane nosedived during a flight over rural Bradley County in Tennessee. Although he was an experienced pilot he had been learning to fly this particular aircraft after recently purchasing it.

The man was one of two pilots in the cockpit. After he was ejected the remaining pilot was able to land the plane and alert authorities stated Bob Gault who spoke on behalf of the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office. Emergency personnel as well as an emergency helicopter from the Tennessee Highway Patrol were dispatched to aid in the search. The man was eventually found in the tree line near the road.

Gualt further stated that the search for the man had been unsuccessful initially because of limited visibility due to trees. He refused to confirm that the man had not worn his safety harness during the flight saying he had to wait on the official report from the National Transportation Safety Board after they complete their investigation. GPS coordinates and pings from the man’s phone assisted in leading authorities to the body.

On The Web:

http://now.msn.com/man-thrown-from-plane-at-2500-feet

http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20130330/NEWS03/130330017/Man-thrown-from-plane-Body-student-pilot-found-Tenn-?nclick_check=1

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Latest-News-Wires/2013/0330/Man-thrown-from-plane-over-Tennessee-video