UPDATED: 1 dead after plane crash at Paine Field

One person has died after a small plane crashed in the woods at the west end of Paine Field in Everett on Thursday, Oct. 1.

He was identified this week as 61-year-old Mark Richardson. According to reports, he was an owner of Grant Aviation Services in Alaska, which provides transportation services for residents in rural Alaska.

According to Paine Field spokesperson Kristin Banfield, the crash occurred at about 2:48 p.m. A Glasair airplane taking off from Paine Field Airport’s main runway crashed into a wooded, undeveloped area of the airport, approximately 750 feet from the runway.

The aircraft caught fire after the crash, and Paine Field Fire Department personnel quickly extinguished it.

The aircraft had one person on board, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

The main runway was closed for about one hour while the Paine Field Fire Department and airport operations crews responded to the scene. The Mukilteo Fire Department and the South County Fire Department assisted.

Support 7 responded to assist first responders at the scene.

The Snohomish County Medical Examiner's Office will determine the decedent's identity, as well as the cause and manner of death.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are investigating the cause of this crash.

Recent accidents at Paine Field

(Source: Wikipedia)

• On Oct. 8, 1996, a Cessna 210 Centurion crashed just north of the airport while attempting to land in heavy fog, killing the pilot. The plane struck a utility pole and several trees before stopping 100 yards (91 m) short of the runway, narrowly missing State Route 526.
• On June 10, 2015, a Beechcraft Bonanza crashed immediately after takeoff in a wooded area south of the airport, between the main runway and Mukilteo Speedway. Of the two occupants on the plane, one died at the scene while the other survived with bone fractures.
• On May 2, 2017, a Piper PA-32-260 crashed immediately after takeoff south of the airport, striking a power line and several cars at the intersection of Harbour Pointe Boulevard and Mukilteo Speedway; the pilot reported losing power beforehand. Both the pilot and the sole passenger survived the crash uninjured; two people on the ground reported minor injuries.
• On Feb. 16, 2024, a Cessna 152 impacted trees and crashed in Japanese Gulch, Mukilteo, near the north end of the field because of engine issues. The sole occupant, the pilot, was not injured.