DIAMOND POINT – The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board began investigating Monday why a small plane crashed the day before, killing a Diamond Point man.
The pilot was identified Monday as Sam Evans, who neighbors said had done civilian work in the Middle East.
The NTSB collected pieces of the wreckage of the Grumman American AA-5A Tiger from the back yard of a Lupine Drive home near the Diamond Point Airstrip, a private airport overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca at the Clallam-Jefferson county line.
The FAA identified the plane based on its wing number and from registration papers found in Evans’ home.
The Clallam County Sheriff’s Department determined that Evans was the pilot based on interviews with eyewitnesses and contact his family members – none of whom live in the state.
“We, along with the NTSB, will do a nine-point inspection and they will examine everything that happened in the flight from takeoff to the end,” said FAA spokesman Mike Fergus.
An autopsy will be done and dental records will be compared to make the final identification of the body.
