YOUR AD HERE »

Moffat County couple dies after plane crashes in ‘Nevada Triangle’

A Moffat County couple was killed in a plane crash Friday, Feb. 15, near Ely, Nevada.

On Wednesday, Feb. 20, the White Pine County Sheriff’s Office in Nevada released the names of two people — 72-year-old Phillip Bethell and 66-year-old Linda Bethell — who were killed in a plane crash on a hillside north of Ely. The crash was first reported by a “local subject” Friday morning.

Deputies responded and, with the aid of the reporting party, “discovered the wreckage of a small plane and the remains of two people,” the news release stated.

At the time of discovery, “the victims were unable to be identified. The remains were transported to the Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office, where they were identified.”

The cause of the crash is unknown, and neither the reason for the Bethell’s trip last week nor their flight plan has been made public.

The area in which the Bethells’ plane went down is known for crashes.

It gained notoriety after the Sept. 3, 2007, disappearance of aviator Steve Fossett — a Chicago millionaire businessman, who also owned a home in Beaver Creek. He became famous for making record-breaking flights.

Fossett’s remains were found in 2008 in California along the Eastern Sierra Nevada, and his disappearance — as well as a history of more than 2,000 plane crashes in the area — have some calling the region “Nevada Roswell” or “Nevada Triangle.”

In addition to the White Pine County Sheriff’s office, the National Transportation Safety Board responded to the incident.

The NTSB stated in a Tweet the evening of Feb. 15 that it was investigating the crash of a Cirrus SR22 after it went down about 10 miles northeast of Ely, Nevada.

The Federal Aviation Administration is also involved in the investigation.

Contact Sasha Nelson at 970-875-1794 or snelson@CraigDailyPress.com.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Craig and Moffat County make the Craig Press’ work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.