This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
MARION, Mont. - A plane crash killed a pilot and four skydivers Saturday in northwestern Montana, leaving no survivors, authorities said.
The crash happened late Saturday morning in a field about 30 miles southwest of Kalispell, in an area known as Lost Prairie, Flathead County Sheriff Mike Meehan said. The Federal Aviation Administration said the plane went down shortly after takeoff, then burned.
Near the end of a paved runway, the front of the aircraft was charred and separated from the rear.
The pilot of the Cessna 182 operated by Skydive Lost Prairie was carrying two skydiving instructors and two trainees to jumps, said Michael Morrill, a manager of the company. He said the plane took off in good weather.
Names of those killed were not released immediately. The skydivers were from Montana, said Fred Sand, owner of the company.
Morrill said the pilot began working for Sky Dive Lost Prairie about 10 days ago and was experienced, with more than 500 hours of flying time. He had a commercial rating, Morrill said.
A woman acquainted with one of the experienced skydivers told The Daily Inter Lake newspaper of Kalispell that she went to the crash site and ''wanted to go out there and pull out my friends, but I couldn't.''