EVERETT
A pilot lost his life in a fatal small aircraft incident at Paine Field Airport last week.
Mark Stuart Richardson, 61, residing in Anchorage, Alaska, succumbed to injuries sustained during the afternoon crash on October 1, as confirmed by the Snohomish County Medical Examiners Office.
Emergencies were dispatched to the airport around 2:50 p.m. after witnesses reported a plane going down during takeoff from the primary runway. Personnel from the Paine Field Fire Department arrived shortly thereafter and managed the scene alongside airport operations staff.
The Glasair-model aircraft caught fire after veering off course and settling into a forested, unimproved section on the western edge of the airfield, roughly 750 feet from the departure point. The pilot, who was alone aboard, was pronounced deceased at the scene.
Investigators determined the cause of death to be multiple blunt-force traumas, with the manner classified as accidental.
A Federal Aviation Administration preliminary report listed the aircraft as belonging to a Homer, Alaska resident. The plane features a single-engine, fixed-wing configuration and was originally certified in 1988.
The airport’s main runway remained closed for approximately sixty minutes to accommodate response efforts. Additional fire resources were provided by the Mukilteo and South County Fire Departments.
Both the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board have opened investigations into the incident to determine contributing factors.