Bodies Removed From Plane Wreckage

Fri., July 14, 2000

From Staff

The bodies of three Spokane men were recovered Thursday from the wreckage of their single-engine plane in the western foothills of the Cascade Mountains.

The wreckages found Wednesday on the west side of Haystack Mountain was believed to be a Cessna 180 carrying the three home from the Arlington Fly-In air show.

The bodies were recovered Thursday afternoon using a rope system, said Jan Jorgensen, a spokeswoman for the Snohomish County sheriff’s office.

The bodies were flown in an Army helicopter to a nearby command site, where they were transferred to the county medical examiner for positive identification, Jorgensen said.

Those aboard the missing plane were identified as owner and pilot James Bleasner, 55; World War II flier and longtime flight instructor Peter Anest Sr., 78, and his brother, Sam Anest, believed to be in his 70s. They had not filed a flight plan.

The wreckage was spotted Wednesday by helicopter about three miles southeast of Gold Bar, which is about 30 miles southeast of the Arlington airport.

The cause of the crash is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board.

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