Cessna 170 placed distress call shortly before going down in
Harvey Bear Ranch
Gilroy – Rescue crews were combing Harvey Bear Ranch/Coyote Lake Park through drizzle and dense fog early Thursday morning searching for a single-engine plane they believe slammed into the ground west of Coyote Lake.
According to officials, the Cessna 170 placed a distress call to the Federal Aviation Administration at approximately 8:30pm Wednesday evening, indicating the craft was flying on instrument flight readings (IFR).
The pilot called out, “Left, left,” before the communication broke off.
Area resident Greg Podshadley said he heard the plane circling for at least 10 minutes. He could not see the plane through the fog, but said he could tell it was flying too low.
“I heard sounds like he was gunning the engine, like he was trying to get altitude or doing acrobatic stunts,” Podshadley said. “I thought, ‘this guy is crazy’ and then I saw a red flash on the other side of the hill. Then there was nothing, no sound. I thought ‘oh my God’ and called 911.”
Scores of rescue personnel from South Santa Clara County Fire/CDF, Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Department and ground and water search and rescue teams, the California Highway Patrol, American Medical Response and the U.S. Coast Guard were at the scene. Several ground rescue teams were sent out with thermal imaging cameras and a dive team was called out due to the possibility that the plane crashed into Coyote Lake. Due to weather conditions, a Coast Guard helicopter was called in, trying to find the downed plane’s emergency signal locator.
Two commercial planes picked up the Cessna’s signal from what appeared to be near Coyote Lake. The Coast Guard helicopter was able to pick up a signal from the plane, but it’s exact location was unclear.
“Because they can’t pick up the repeater signal, it’s all guesswork,” said Serg Palanov, Public Information Officer for the Sheriff’s Department.
The plane’s origin and destination were unknown, but officials say the plane was headed towards the South County Airport in San Martin. It was not clear how many passengers were on the four-seater aircraft.
“It’s possible the pilot was confused from the fog, but we don’t know what happened,” said Palanov. “We’ve isolated it towards the dam.”
*Chief Photographer James M. Mohs contributed to this report.
