A Teton Valley pilot died in a plane crash Wednesday night near Lexington, Oregon. Identified by the Morrow County Sheriff's Office as 65-year old Stephen Dean Lunceford of Driggs, the plane crashed on its approach to the small, two-runway airport in northeastern Oregon.

Lunceford's passenger, identified as his son-in-law, Jeffery Smock, 37, of San Francisco survived the crash and crawled through farm fields to a nearby residence where 911 was called. Smock was airlifted to St. Charles Medical Center in Bend, Ore., and was in serious condition as of Thursday night.

The crash happened at approximately 10:56 p.m. The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash, but no cause has yet been determined.

FAA public affairs officer, Mike Fergus, said Lunceford was flying a Cessna 182 from Pasco, Wash., to Lexington, Oregon.

A representative from Teton Aviation in Driggs would not confirm the crash and said no one would be commenting.

Lexington is a single runway. It has reopened after new runway put down. I fly there twice a month for some place to go. I will be interested to know if the lights worked or if there was some other problem. It is easy to get in and out of. Nice fuel stop and ok place to sleep and shower. My condolences to the families.

NTSB Identification: WPR12FA021
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Wednesday, October 26, 2011 in Lexington, OR
Aircraft: CESSNA 182R, registration: N6545E
Injuries: 1 Fatal,1 Serious.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.

On October 26, 2011, about 1830 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 182R, N6545E, collided with terrain near Lexington, Oregon. The pilot/owner was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The private pilot sustained fatal injuries, and one passenger sustained serious injuries. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The cross-country personal flight departed Pasco, Washington, about 1800, with a planned destination of Lexington. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.

The pilot flew from Lexington to Pasco to pickup his passenger at the airport. After departing back to Lexington, the passenger tilted his seat back to rest. The passenger sat up when the pilot announced that they were approaching the airport, and on 5-mile base for landing at Lexington. They could see the runway lights, and then the airplane reacted violently as it hit the ground. The passenger did not hear any warning comments from the pilot.

The passenger sustained severely injured feet and other serious injuries. The passenger began crawling, and eventually came to a home almost 2 miles away about 4 hours later.

A friend of the pilot reported to local law enforcement that the airplane was 2 hours overdue. Officers verified that the pilot’s car was still at the airport. They began a search, and then received the call that the passenger was at the residence. From the passenger’s description of his ordeal, the local first responders were able to locate the accident site.

The National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge (IIC), a Federal Aviation administration (FAA) inspector, and accident investigators from the airframe and engine manufacturer examined the wreckage on site.

The accident site was high on a ridge in the middle of a wheat field. The First Identified Point of Contact (FIPC) was a ground scar. The main wreckage consisted of the fuselage, empennage, and wings; the wings had folded onto each other, and the airplane had rolled about 135 degrees onto its left side. The cabin area sustained upward crush damage on the bottom, and inboard crush damage on the left side. The main wreckage came to rest about 236 feet from the FIPC; the engine separated, and was about 386 feet from the FIPC. The debris path was along a magnetic bearing of 254 degrees, and the fuselage was heading about 330 degrees.

Wow...great story of survival by the passenger. A 2 mile crawl would be pretty intense with broken bits dragging along behind him. Condolences to the family of the Pilot.

I lived in lexington for a while and learned to fly at that airport. I've made that same flight...Pasco to Lexington. a few times at night. The last 30 miles there are very few lights on the ground. It's like flying into a black hole.

That day, Oct 26, was a new moon so it was a "Dark" night. The airport sits up on a flat above the town. The report says the impact was in a wheat field high on a ridge and the debris was along a heading of 254 degrees.

The runway numbers are 26 and 8. There is terrain about 1000 feet higher than the airport about 4 miles east. The house the passenger crawled to is in Piper Canyon which is east of the field too.