The wreckage of a helicopter which went missing over central Arizona over the weekend has been found, officials said on Monday. The president and chief executive officer of a local restaurant chain was among the four people who were killed.
The Eurocopter AS350 Ecureuil helicopter (N729DP) had departed from Scottsdale, a city in the eastern part of Maricopa County, at approximately 8 a.m. local time on Saturday. The aircraft was carrying four people and was en-route to Sedona, a city that straddles the county line between Coconino and Yavapai counties.
“Somebody reported the aircraft overdue when it failed to arrive in Sedona. Search crews with the Civil Air Patrol began looking for the aircraft Saturday,” said Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). A private pilot spotted the aircraft at around 8:45 am local time on Sunday, south of Camp Verde in Yavapai County.
The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Department confirmed the wreckage is the missing helicopter, and said all four people on board were killed. The victims were identified as 70-year-old pilot Raymond P. Perry, 68-year-old Karen Stinn, 63-year-old Mike Dunaway, and his wife, 64-year-old Linda Dunaway.
Perry was the president and chief executive officer of the Arriba Mexican Grill restaurant chain, which has six locations in the Phoenix area.
The cause of the accident was not immediately known.
