On Jan 2, 2013, a Luscombe 8A Silvaire crashed in Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation area, a park in San Luis Obispo County. State Park rangers and Five Cities Fire Authority arrived on the scene.
The pilot’s name, Glen Philip Ray, was released Thursday along with his cause of death: sharp force trauma injuries.
The only one aboard the vintage plane (circa 1937) was the pilot. A memorial celebrating Ray is scheduled on Jan. 13 at noon at Art Craft Paint in Santa Maria.
The pilot, who is a former marine, flew commercial cargo planes, restored planes and took side jobs working on various aircraft. He owned his plane but on the ground, instead of a car, he mostly got around by bike.
The NTSB investigator handling this accident is Howard Plagens. The investigation is expected to take a year, although a preliminary report will probably be available in ten days.
