Alamogordo, NM - After an aircraft went missing Wednesday following takeoff from White Sands Regional Airport in Alamogordo, New Mexico State Police say they located the plane and the remains of the pilot and passenger south of Cloudcroft.
The men who died have been identified as 73-year-old Ralph Guerin and 40-year-old Patrick Cheung.
The U.S. Air Force Rescue Coordination Center notified New Mexico State Police of a missing aircraft shortly after 5 p.m., saying the plane took off at 11:30 a.m. and was scheduled to return within an hour. The burned out wreckage was found Thursday a little after 10 a.m.
State police were assisted by the Otero County Sheriff’s Office, Alamogordo Police Department, Otero County Emergency Services, Alamogordo Fire Department, the Lincoln National Forest Service, and New Mexico Search and Rescue. The National Transportation Safety Board will take over the investigation.
There is no word at this time on the cause of the crash.