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Tony Kuhn
A Roseburg man was killed Sunday when the plane he was piloting apparently developed mechanical problems and crashed in central Texas.
George Anthony “Tony” Kuhn, 66, reported to an air traffic controller that the autopilot controls of the Beechcraft King Air 90 twin turboprop had failed and that he was having trouble controlling the plane, according to an e-mail sent to Kuhn’s friends by Sean Smith, his stepson.
An air traffic controller noticed the plane deviating from the flight plan Kuhn had filed before the flight between Hondo, Texas — located 42 miles west of San Antonio — and Phoenix Goodyear Airport in Arizona, according to Smith’s e-mail. The flight controller later lost radio contact with Kuhn, who was rated as a commercial pilot for both single-engine and multi-engine planes and was once a flight instructor.
The plane, owned by Western Wings Corp. of Roseburg, crashed about 30 miles west of Rocksprings, Texas, said Roland Herwig, a spokesman for the Southwestern Region office of the Federal Aviation Administration in Oklahoma City, Okla. Rocksprings is about 111 miles by road northwest of Hondo.
The National Transportation Safety Board has taken charge of the investigation, Herwig said.
Kuhn and Bill Woods, the president of Western Wings, had gone to Texas to bring back another plane to Roseburg. Woods was at the crash site this morning.
Douglas County Commissioner Doug Robertson, who had known Kuhn for 35 years, said Kuhn was “meticulous as a pilot.” Robertson said he had flown several times with Kuhn and said he spent more time than most pilots performing pre-flight checks and looking the aircraft over before taking off.
Kuhn was a longtime member of the Douglas County Industrial Development Board and spent two decades as the director of the Coos Curry Douglas Business Development Corp. In addition, he was the former president of Evergreen Forest Products in Oakland.
“Tony was probably the most organized person I have ever been around,” Robertson said. “It’s shocking to hear of his death.”
Kuhn’s body has been returned to Roseburg, said Patricia Engle, his mother-in-law. Engle said funeral arrangements were still being organized.
• You can reach reporter John Sowell at 957-4209 or by e-mail at jsowell@nrtoday.com.
George Anthony “Tony” Kuhn, 66, reported to an air traffic controller that the autopilot controls of the Beechcraft King Air 90 twin turboprop had failed and that he was having trouble controlling the plane, according to an e-mail sent to Kuhn’s friends by Sean Smith, his stepson.
An air traffic controller noticed the plane deviating from the flight plan Kuhn had filed before the flight between Hondo, Texas — located 42 miles west of San Antonio — and Phoenix Goodyear Airport in Arizona, according to Smith’s e-mail. The flight controller later lost radio contact with Kuhn, who was rated as a commercial pilot for both single-engine and multi-engine planes and was once a flight instructor.
The plane, owned by Western Wings Corp. of Roseburg, crashed about 30 miles west of Rocksprings, Texas, said Roland Herwig, a spokesman for the Southwestern Region office of the Federal Aviation Administration in Oklahoma City, Okla. Rocksprings is about 111 miles by road northwest of Hondo.
The National Transportation Safety Board has taken charge of the investigation, Herwig said.
Kuhn and Bill Woods, the president of Western Wings, had gone to Texas to bring back another plane to Roseburg. Woods was at the crash site this morning.
Douglas County Commissioner Doug Robertson, who had known Kuhn for 35 years, said Kuhn was “meticulous as a pilot.” Robertson said he had flown several times with Kuhn and said he spent more time than most pilots performing pre-flight checks and looking the aircraft over before taking off.
Kuhn was a longtime member of the Douglas County Industrial Development Board and spent two decades as the director of the Coos Curry Douglas Business Development Corp. In addition, he was the former president of Evergreen Forest Products in Oakland.
“Tony was probably the most organized person I have ever been around,” Robertson said. “It’s shocking to hear of his death.”
Kuhn’s body has been returned to Roseburg, said Patricia Engle, his mother-in-law. Engle said funeral arrangements were still being organized.
• You can reach reporter John Sowell at 957-4209 or by e-mail at jsowell@nrtoday.com.
