Body of missing Colville pilot discovered in lake after week-long search

COLVILLE, Wash. — The body of a missing pilot from Colville was discovered in Sullivan Lake on Saturday, WSDOT officials said.

The pilot, identified as 67-year-old Terry Coleman, had been missing since around noon Monday.

WSDOT said a local resident discovered the body in the lake after crews had spent the week searching for Coleman.

"This is not the resolution anyone hoped for and our thoughts are with the Coleman family and loved ones, some of whom worked with searchers in the week-long effort to find Mr. Coleman and his Cessna 182 Skylane. The local communities have been incredibly supportive both of the family and the search crews during the trying days of the search," a WSDOT statement read.

ORIGINAL STORY:

The Washington State Department of Transportation is searching for a missing plane in the Colville/Stevens County area of Eastern Washington.

The pilot, a 67-year-old Colville man, was the only one aboard his personal Cessna 182 Skylane.

Officials say he left the Colville Municipal Airport around noon Monday and planned to fly around the area for about an hour.

When he failed to return, family members called authorities and a search was launched.

WSDOT said no emergency beacon signals or other distress signals were recorded in the area. Two flights, including the Spokane County Sheriff's Office helicopter, searched the area overnight and found no signs of the plane.

WSDOT Aviation Search and Rescue is leading the search and working with local authorities.

Colville is about 70 miles north of Spokane in the northeast corner of Washington.

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