Police have identified the man killed in a powered parachute accident on Saturday at the San Rafael Swell.
Rodney Pridmore, 68, of Idaho, died when his aircraft — which consists of a frame, small engine, wheels and a parachute — crashed at the Sid and Charley pinnacles shortly before noon, according to the Emery County Sheriff’s Office.
Pridmore and four other men flew from the Huntington Airport to Sid and Charley earlier Saturday morning, police said. He was among the first to take off from the area, and he radioed the other men that he was “having problems with his aircraft.”
They advised him to try to land, but he crashed in a shallow wash and died on impact.
Police said the initial investigation “suggests a problem with the rope and pulley steering system” on Pridmore’s powered parachute. The Federal Aviation Administration will conduct a further investigation.
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