Plane Belonging To Missing Businessman Found, Body Found In Wreckage
MINDEN,Nev. (AP/CBS) – The downed plane belonging to local businessman Robert "Budge" Brown has been found.
Brown's son, Jeff, told CBS13 Friday that the Civil Air Patrol called him and said the plane was spotted near the Salt Springs Reservior, but the condition of the aircraft is unknown. He also said that officials have told him that a body has been found in the wreckage, but it has not been positively identified as his father. Jeff told CBS13 that he believes it is his father, although it has not been confirmed.
The Civil Air Patrol also said it will be "touch and go" for the next few hours while they try and get to the plane and the body out of the wreckage.
Pilots on Friday traced the route Brown was reportedly going to fly after taking off fromMinden-TahoeAirporttwo days earlier. A family attorney has said Brown was on his way toTracyin the single-engine aircraft.
The air search covered more ground around Brown's last known position. Radar traces last showed the aircraft over the Sierra, southwest of Lake Tahoe aroundAmadorCounty.
At least four Civil Air Patrol aircraft took part in the search Friday. Rescuers with the Civil Air Patrol and Amador County Sheriff's Office have also searched on foot.
Brown was a pioneer in waterslide parks when he opened Oakwood Lake Resort in 1974. The resort closed in 2004. Brown is also owns a winery and is a philanthropist. He named one of his wineries Cleavage Creek Cellars in 2007 to support research into breast cancer after his wife died from the disease.
(Copyright 2011 by CBS, The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
