Washington Men Killed In Crash Near Sun Valley

Authorities say two Washington men died when their light airplane crashed in a canyon south of Sun Valley.

Mark L. McKean, 43, Longview, and his brother-in-law, Keith Donahe, 46, Kelso, were headed to Utah for a fishing trip when McKean’s single-engine Cessna 150 crashed.

McKean, the pilot, and Donahe left Kelso on Thursday and landed in Sun Valley to stay with friends overnight before proceeding to Utah on Friday for the fishing trip, according to K.C. Babcock of Silver Lake, McKean’s former sister-in law.

The Blaine County sheriff’s office said the plane was found 4-5 miles northwest of Hailey Airport in Sun Valley. It did not burn. The crash site is in the rugged Sawtooth Mountain Range of central Idaho.

Officials learned of the crash because of a signal sent out by an emergency transmitter aboard the small white aircraft, and the wrecked plane was found by another aircraft.

The sheriff’s office said the cause is under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration.