NTSB releases report on missing plane

WOLF LAKE — The National Transportation Safety Board has released its preliminary report on missing pilot Brendan Mattingley.

“A review of archived radar data revealed that on Oct. 13, about 1:37 a.m., an unidentified aircraft, believed to be the accident airplane, departed from the Soldotna Airport,” according to the report.

Alaska State Troopers reported Mattingley was last seen just after midnight the morning of Oct. 13. He’d been in Soldotna visiting a friend, who put him in a taxi that took him to the airport there. The last person to see him, according to an AST spokeswoman, told troopers he was “very drunk.”

His family described Mattingley as frugal with his money and therefore unlikely to risk his expensive plane flying intoxicated. His brother said Mattingley told family his plan was to sleep in the plane and fly out in the morning.

NTSB said the plane the agency believes to be Mattingley’s took off and, after some turns, headed north. Just over an hour later, the plane dropped off of radar.

“The last position of the radar target was recorded about 2:48 a.m., mid-channel over the Cook Inlet,” according to the report.

In the wake of Mattingley’s disappearance, friends, family and other local pilots launched a search effort with search organizers providing fuel to keep multiple small planes aloft at a time.

The privately organized and privately financed search was in addition to an official effort that included U.S. Coast Guard, Alaska Air National Guard and Alaska State Troopers helicopters, as well as various branches of the Civil Air Patrol.

The official search, which was eventually called off on Oct. 23, included 221 hours of flight time and 66 missions.

The unofficial search was also very large, and also included multiple helicopters and fixed-wing planes. Search volunteer Ben Cruz wrote on Facebook based about conversations he’d had with state search officials.

“They expressed that this is possibly the biggest civilian search and rescue effort in the state of Alaska. Even though we have not found Brendan Mattingley yet, the search will continue but on a much smaller scale,” Cruz wrote.

That Facebook page — Bring Brendan Mattingley Home — remains active with updates on the scaled-back search.

Contact reporter Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.