Small plane crashes in Everett, killing pilot

Published 3:40 pm Saturday, July 14, 2007

EVERETT — The pilot of a small plane was killed when his aircraft crashed in an Everett neighborhood this afternoon.

The plane came down in the 500 block of Sharon Crest Avenue, Everett police Sgt. Robert Goetz said.

The pilot was dead at the scene. His identity was not immediately known.

The crash occurred on Everett’s Rucker Hill, northeast of Paine Field.

At about 1:20 p.m., the pilot of the single-person Yakolev aircraft radioed the tower at Paine Field to report that he was inbound with a rough-running engine, said Glen Martinsen, Everett assistant fire chief. Within minutes, 911 dispatchers received phone calls reporting the crash.

Witnesses said the Russian-made aircraft crashed into the backyard of one home. There were no immediate reports of other injuries or damage.

Police and fire crews sealed off the crash area and were awaiting the arrival of investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board.