What happened
On July 23, 2012, a Jeffko Glasair, registration N743CA, departed Tonasket Municipal Airport in Tonasket, Washington, at approximately 0830 for a cross-country flight to Sequim Valley Airport. The pilot, a 72-year-old commercial pilot and certified flight instructor, was operating the experimental amateur-built aircraft under 14 CFR Part 91. No flight plan had been filed for the flight.
At 1520 that afternoon, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an alert notice (ALNOT) after family members reported the aircraft had not reached its destination. A search and rescue mission was launched by the Washington State Department of Transportation. The aircraft's intended route would have crossed the Cascade Mountain Range, where the maximum elevation figure is 10,500 feet MSL.
During the search, no signal was received from the pilot's cell phone, and it could not be confirmed if a recently purchased Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) had been installed in the aircraft. Radar data from Seattle and Spokane did not show any targets related to the flight. After 100 sorties involving fixed-wing and rotorcraft assets, the search was terminated at 1700 on July 29.
Findings
At the time of the flight, an AIRMET for mountain obscuration was active for the area. While weather at the departure area was reported as having 10 miles visibility and an overcast ceiling at 9,500 feet, the pilot did not request any weather services or obtain a briefing from any weather providers. The aircraft, which was built by the pilot and received its airworthiness certificate in 2008, has not been located, and the pilot is presumed to have sustained 1 fatal injury.