Pilot survives a fiery landing
CRASH: Plane catches on fire in the air, lands on gravel bar in river.
By ZAZ HOLLANDER
Anchorage Daily News
Published: June 15th, 2005
Last Modified: June 15th, 2005 at 10:56 AM
WASILLA -- It's every pilot's nightmare: a plane on fire and a cockpit full of flames and smoke.
That's what Wasilla pilot Mark Bills was forced to deal with Sunday afternoon as he attempted to land his Cessna 206 on a gravel bar southwest of Skwentna.
But Bills lived to tell the story -- his body burned and battered but alive -- thanks to his skill, a bevy of area pilots and a lodge operator who came quickly to his aid.
"It's the Bush. It can be any one of us at any time," said Bob Wilson, who manages the Talaview Lodge a few miles from the crash site and monitored the drama on an aviation radio frequency.
"Mark did a good job of putting that baby down."
Bills, owner of Alaska Airborne Adventures in Willow, regularly ferries cargo to the Skwentna area. On Sunday, he was carrying a load of plywood from Willow to Hayes River on an external rack on the Cessna's belly.
Somehow, the plywood ignited in flight and caught the undercarriage of the plane on fire.
His cockpit filled with smoke and fire, Bills crash-landed the plane on a gravel bar in the Skwentna River.
"I was on fire, the whole plane was on fire," he said by phone Tuesday from his Alaska Regional Hospital room. "I pre-opened the door and undid my seat belt so I was ready to roll. As soon as the plane hit the ground, I bailed out."
His clothes were on fire. He doused the flames in the river.
"I was pretty lucky," Bills said.
NTSB has not determined the cause of the fire.
Barry Stanley, owner of Denali Flying Service in Willow, was cruising home at 7,000 feet above the Alaska Range when he spotted the column of black smoke rising from Bills' plane. Stanley flew over to take a closer look and saw the burning plane and Bills in the water, waving his arms.
On the radio, Wilson heard Stanley describe the sight and called for help. A Beaver pilot who had just dropped supplies at the lodge flew over to offer assistance but couldn't land because the water was too shallow, Wilson said.
Meanwhile, a helicopter pilot in the area got wind of the crash. Tim Carlovich, owner of Jayhawk Air near Merrill Field, plugged the crash site's GPS coordinates into his computer and said, " 'I'll be there in 14 minutes,' " according to Wilson.
Carlovich picked up Bills and flew him to Alaska Regional Hospital.
Bills suffered minor burns on his hands, face and head and torn ligaments in his knee. He is scheduled for surgery today.
A Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman said it appears Bills failed to get pre-authorization for the external load. The approval is required of any pilot, commercial or private, and includes a check on the pilot's flight time and any modifications to the plane, FAA spokeswoman Joette Storm said.
Bills, however, said he's flown with similar loads many times, using an approved rack, and doesn't require approval every time he flies.
Bills' wife said she expects her husband home Thursday or Friday.
"His guardian angel was flying fast enough to keep up with him," Stanley said.
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