Crews Search For 71-Year-Old Missing Pilot In Eastern Oklahoma

Authorities say an Arkansas man was reported missing to the Federal Aviation Administration, after his wife said he never returned from a private flight to Elk City. This, according to CBS affiliate in Fort Smith, Arkansas, KFSM.

Crews are searching Scott and LeFlore Counties for the suspected downed plane, according to Scott County Judge James Forbes.

Elmer Ray Broadbent, 71, took off around 1:30 p.m. Monday, in his single-engine plane, from Searcy, Arkansas. His wife, Dardee Broadbent, told the Fort Smith station that he never checked into his hotel in Elk City, his intended destination, and she hasn't been able to get him on the phone.

She said she reported it to the FAA on Tuesday morning and reported him missing.

Emergency crews have not yet found any evidence of the suspected crash in Scott or LeFlore counties, Forbes said. They diverted their efforts to LeFlore County only early Tuesday night, because that was where the plane's last coordinates were recorded.

A Pryor couple was killed in a plane crash in rural Arkansas Monday afternoon. They were also flying in a single-engine aircraft, intended for Oklahoma.

Light rain was falling in northwest Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma when their plane crashed. Investigators will determine if it was a factor.

Dardee said her husband received his pilot's license when he was 19, more than 50 years ago. He flew commercial planes for Pan Am Airlines and owns three planes in Searcy.

His wife said she's holding out hope he landed safely when the bad weather hit Monday, and he will be found safe.

10/22/2013 Related Story: Pryor Business Owner And Wife Lost When Plane Crashes In Arkansas

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