A plane carrying two Washington cousins crashed at a remote airstrip near West Glacier after colliding with trees while attempting to take off, a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board said.  

Both men died in the crash.  

On the cloudless morning of Saturday, July 26, Dwight Steffanson, 69, from College Place, Washington, and Thomas Gladden, 68, from Otis Orchards, Washington, hopped in a Grumman AA-5 plane at Ryan Field.  

Steffanson was a skilled metalworker, train enthusiast, contra dance fan and active community member with a passion for flying, according to an article published in the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin. He volunteered much of his time helping maintain a display 99-year-old Union Pacific steam locomotive, adorning it with thousands of bright lights each year, the paper reported. 

It remains unclear who was operating the plane, but flight records show the aircraft was registered under Gladden’s name. 

The single-engine plane had landed in Ryan Field the day before the crash from Kellogg, Idaho, according to flight records.  

Witnesses reported that the aircraft did not conduct an engine check before turning onto the grass-covered runway, the report stated. Two planes were circling the airstrip overhead, intending to land while radioing with the Grumman AA-5 plane. 

When the plane began its takeoff roll down the airstrip, the engine was at high revolutions per minute and sounded normal but was still moving slow, witnesses reported. One witness recalled seeing the plane’s flaps retracted.  

The Grumman AA-5 started its takeoff roll down the airstrip but failed to get airborne until reaching the end of the runway. At about 9:42 a.m., it collided with trees and rocky outcropped terrain at the edge of a clearing about 440 feet from the end of the runway and became engulfed in flames. There was no explosion, according to the report.  

The Coram-West Glacier Volunteer Fire Department, Hungry Horse Fire Department, Martin City Fire Department, Three Rivers Ambulance, Flathead County Office of Emergency Services and members of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Posse responded to the crash.  

The debris field was about 80 feet long heading approximately north, according to the report. 

The wreckage was relocated to a secure facility for further examination.  

A final report from the National Transportation Safety Board detailing the probable cause of the crash is not expected for one to two years.  

A second crash occurred at Ryan Field on Aug. 12, killing the pilot.  

The preliminary report Federal Aviation Administration showed that the right wing of the Van’s RV-7 plane clipped a tree while attempting a go-around at the airstrip. The plane was found upside down at the end of the runway. 

Reporter Jack Underhill can be reached at 758-4407 or  [email protected].