Subsequent to the 2024
search, there has been much discussion of a target area for 2025. The 2024 project involved primarily contour
flying with a Cessna 182 over a 325 mi.² block centered on the airway Amber 02,
located west of Aishihik.
Harmen Keyser and several
other members have suggested that the aircraft may well be on or near the
airway centerline but rendered all but invisible due to forest cover and
terrain features. Due to the improved
visibility in alpine areas, it is thought that the aircraft might already have
been found it was above tree line.
On that basis, a
search program has been put together focusing on 10 timbered blocks along the
airway centerline and the eastern end of a possible shortcut route from the
vicinity of Mt. Sanford to Aishihik. To
increase the chances of success in the lowland timbered areas, the search will
employ the following features:
- · a Bell 206 JetRanger helicopter flown slowly
and at low altitude
- · crewed by three observers plus the pilot with
the doors off for improved vertical visibility
- · up to four low-level transects flown on either
side and parallel to the airway
- · the flight altitude of 500 feet AGL and line
spacing of 830 feet provides for a maximum vertical viewing angle of 40°
- · as the forested areas cannot be defined with
high precision in the planning stage, it is anticipated that flight lines may
be extended and shortened as actual conditions dictate
- · the project will be based at Burwash, YT, about
55 miles from the search area.
We feel that this
detailed and thorough approach should preclude the need for subsequent searches
in those areas.
Due to the intense
nature of the search and equipment used, this is not an inexpensive
project. A detailed budget containing a
15% contingency factor has been prepared.
If all components, including the helicopter, are fully costed, the
funding requirement is estimated to be about $50,000. However, Mr. Keyser, of Precision GeoSurveys
Inc., can make the helicopter available at cost, a significant saving of about
$23,000. This gives us a sizable head
start on our funding.
Nevertheless, about
$27,000 remains to be funded through direct donations or in-kind contributions
towards support costs such as jet fuel, food and accommodation, etc.
We are hoping that
individuals or organizations will feel moved to help solve this 75-year-old
mystery and provide some measure of satisfaction to the family and friends of
the lost airmen of Skymaster 2469.
Our contact
information is on the home page and a Go Fund Me site has been established:
We welcome any and all inquiries and especially offers of financial help!
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