Pilot Killed When Piper PA-22 Crashes Into Hillside in Ocotillo Wells, California
Why It MattersA fatal light-aircraft accident in remote desert terrain adds to general aviation's safety record in the region and leaves the cause to the FAA's investigation.
The pilot of a light aircraft was killed Tuesday when a Piper PA-22 crashed into a desert hillside in Ocotillo Wells, in the far eastern part of San Diego County, California, according to Cal Fire and the Federal Aviation Administration. The aircraft went down shortly before 9:30 a.m. off Quarry Road, near state Route 78 and just west of Imperial County.
The crew of a sheriff's helicopter located the wreckage of the four-seat airplane on a promontory known as Blowsand Hill, said Josh Cormode, a fire captain with Cal Fire. Cal Fire crews then hiked to the crash site and found the body of the pilot.
