Minnesota Searches for Missing Aircraft

Minnesota Wing is engaged in a search for a missing aircraft. Please find below the latest releases on this mission.

Date Issued: Nov 16th 2009 @ 11:46 AM

Contact: 1st Lt George Supan 612-910-4375, Major Al Pabon 612-296-0474

The Civil Air Patrol's (CAP) Minnesota Wing continues searching today for an aircraft that went missing this past Friday.

The aircraft is a white PA-28 Piper Cherokee with yellow stripes and black highlights. The plane left the Air Lake airport in Lakeville, MN on Friday November 13th bound for Hallock, MN. CAP was alerted of the missing aircraft early morning of November 14th by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center at Tyndall AFB, FL.

Yesterday air and ground search teams searched in the area between Wadena and Hallock, they deployed 110 CAP members, 12 aircraft including a plane from North Dakota and 8 ground search teams. Over 2000 square miles were searched yesterday.

The search continued today at first light with operations based at the Brainerd Regional Airport.

10 Aircraft including one from North Dakota are searching for the missing plane and pilot Andrew Lindberg. There are also 5 Ground Search teams following up a variety of leads today.

Yesterday CAP deployed and advanced imaging system called ARCHER (Airborne Real-time Cueing Hyperspectral Enhanced Reconnaissance) System to help search for Mr. Lindberg and his plane.

ARCHER is a custom-designed system which uses a hyperspectral camera and special software for search and rescue (SAR), disaster impact assessment and relief, and homeland security.

(Please see attached fact sheets for more about the ARCHER System.)

ARCHER has three methods for finding things: signature matching (matching reflected light to spectral signatures), and anomaly detection (calculates a statistical model of all the pixels in the image to see if there is a probability that a pixel does not belong in the scene). For this search this system is being used to look for anomalies.

Search operations with the ARCHER System will continue today.

CAP is requesting that pilots stay out of the airspace between St. Cloud and Foston, MN to avoid interefering with search operations.

Anyone with any information is urged to contact their local county sheriff's office.

Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with 58,000 members nationwide. CAP performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and was credited by the AFRCC with saving 91 lives in fiscal year 2008. Its volunteers also perform homeland security, disaster relief and counter-drug missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to the nearly 22,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions for America for 68 years.

-30-

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Date Issued: Nov 15th 2009 @ 7:00 PM

-------------------------------------------------------------

Date Issued: Nov 15th 2009 @ 10:14 AM

Search Continues for Missing Aircraft

Contact: Major Al Pabon 612-296-0474; 1st Lt George Supan 612-910-4375

The Civil Air Patrol's (CAP) Minnesota Wing continues the search for an aircraft that was reported missing this past Friday.

The aircraft is a yellow and black PA-28 Piper Cherokee which left the Air Lake airport in Lakeville, MN on Friday November 13th bound for Hallock, MN.

Air and ground teams continue the search today in the area between Wadena and Hallock.. Yesterday the CAP deployed 5 aircraft and had 57 volunteers searching for the missing aircraft.

Civil Air Patrol was alerted of the missing aircraft early morning of November 14th by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center at Tyndall AFB, FL.

Anyone with any information is urged to contact their local county sheriff's office.

Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with 58,000 members nationwide. CAP performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and was credited by the AFRCC with saving 91 lives in fiscal year 2008. Its volunteers also
perform homeland security, disaster relief and counter-drug missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to the nearly 22,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions for America for 68 years.

-30-

-------------------------------------------------------------

Date Issued: Nov 14th 2009 @ 12:54 PM

Missing Aircraft in Minnesota

A single engine aircraft left the Metro area on the evening of November 13, 2009 headed for Hallock, MN. The aircraft has not reached the destination.

Civil Air Patrol was alerted. Civil Air Patrol ground teams were dispatched to search the route looking for the aircraft.

The current area of search is between Wadena and Hallock, MN.

More information will be provided as it becomes available.

90 percent of the search and rescue in the United State is done by the Civil Air Patrol. In 2008, 91 lives were saved as a result of their volunteer work.

Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with over 1200 members in Minnesota. CAP performs the search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to young people currently participation in the CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions for America for 68 years.

-30-