Probe Opens In Top-Secret Jet Crash

Latest Equipment Aboard Lost Fighter

Province Reporter Locates Body On Mountain

By Paddy Sherman

U.S. Air Force officers today began probing the wreckage of an F-86 Sabre jet fighter, loaded with "top secret equipment," which crashed on Grouse Mountain Friday afternoon, strewing parts hundreds of feet and fatally injuring its pilot.

The whole of the Grouse Mountain area was temporarily sealed off this morning to prevent skiers from tampering with the wreckage. RCMP took 1000 feet of rope up the mountain this morning to cordon off hte area.

Grouse Mountain Ski Lift operation will be normal however.

The Sabre, from McChord Air Force Base, carved a 100-foot swath of devastation as it plowed into the mountainside at the 2500-foot level and disintegrated.

I found the body of Pilot Lieut. Lamar J. Barlow, aged 25, of Tacoma, 50 feet from one of the best known cabins in the mountain - the vivid green and yellow Dog House at Tower 17.

This was at 2:30 a.m., and ended speculation that the pilot had managed to bail out by using his explosive charged ejector seat.

Barlow is survived by his wife, Gloria Jane of 10103 Kline street, Tacoma, and his mother, Mrs. Letta May Staples, at Richfield, Utah, Barlow's home town. They were notified of his death at 8 o'clock this morning.

Barlow had been at McChord field since October.

The plane had apparently hit the mountainside while dropping in low to make an emergency landing at Sea Island. It was travelling north.

A rain of pieces, some of them no bigger than confetti, peppered the cabin, smashing a window. No one was inside at the time.

Other parts flew over the lift track, littering the snow. The lift was not running at the time.

The North Vancouver coroner's office announced today it will not schedule an inquest or inquiry into the crash.

KEEPING WATCH

Today, Sgt. J. R. (Red) Jamieson and two armed guards were keeping watch on the roped off area until Major Craig H. Fairburn and a team of investigators could reach the scene.

The young pilot never had a chance after he radioed that all of his instruments had failed when he was at 20,000 feet, and 15 miles north of Vancouver.

When I found the pilot, he was still strapped to his seat by the safety jet. His unused parachute fluttered from one of the many trees smashed by the hurtling jet.

HEAVY RAIN

I reported the find to Sgt. Jamieson and RCMP Constable Al Clark, examining wreckage nearby in fog and heavy rain.

The alarm was given by Dog House co-owner Roy Nunn, of 2400 West Thirty-seventh.

"I went to the cabin about 8:30 p.m. and walked over to check on the outside water line.

"Pieces of wreckage were littered around. Just then, two girls passed, hiking up the track, and I gave them numbers from part of the wreck. They telephoned RCMP.

NORTH OF CITY

Last contact U.S. airforce base at McChord Field had with Barlow's F86 jet was at 12:0? when the pilot radioed he had "lost" his instruments.

Radar placed his position as being 60 miles north of Vancouver and guided him to within 15 miles north of the city.

Major C. D. Sawfelle, public information officer of the 25th Air Division of the U.S. Air Force, said at that time, the pilot radioed "Mayday" - an SOS indicating, "that he had lost his instruments and that he himself was lost."

CLOSER TO CITY

The U.S. Air Force radar station at Blaine picked up the plane and guided it closer to Vancouver where the pilot requested permission to make an emergency landing.

RCAF officials here say that after receiving the emergency call, about 12:06, the airport was cleared, but when the airport tried to reach Barlow by radio, to tell him to come in, no contact could be established.

OVER TELEVISION

As soon as radio and radar contact with the ill-fated plane was lost, U.S. Air Force contacted radio and television stations, asking them to broadcast emergency bulletins, advising people in the Vancouver area who might have heard a jet plane to contact the McChord air base.

More than 30 residents of the Vancouver area phoned the McChord base and other calls flooded into the RCAF operations centre here.

Major Sawtelle assured The Province that these calls were "an immense help." "The calls narrowed the search area down," he said, "and assisted us greatly."

HOME FOR LUNCH

One of the calls to RCAF headquarters came from C.V. Clee of 224 West St. James road near the foot of Grouse Mountain.

"I just happened to be home for lunch," said Mr. Clee, who installs meters for the B.C. Electric, and was working on the North Shore Friday morning.

"About noon we heard this sudden roar-it just seemed to be over the house and it sounded like it was a plane in a steep dive."

FEW SECONDS

"The roar lasted for a few seconds and then faded out completely.

"Later we heard a Seattle radio newscast, telling of the crash and advising Vancouver residents to contact McChord field.

"We didn't do that but we telephoned the air force here."

The roar lasted just about 30 seconds, Mr. Clee said. He added that because of the rain, he and his wife couldn't see any plane, or know in which direction it was travelling.

Another call to McChord Field, helped to isolate the crash area even more.

Major Sawtelle said one Vancouver resident called to say that he had heard a jet plane in the North Vancouver area.

The plane seemed to be circling, the caller said, then sounded as though it was headed on a straight course. The roar of the engine didn't fade - it stopped suddenly, indicating that it had either crashed or gone behind a mountain, Major Sawtelle said.

CIRCLED CITY

After radioing the airport here, it is quite possible the pilot skirted the perimeter of Vancouver in an effort to avoid crashing into the city proper where he would be endangering the lives of unsuspecting people. This could account for his crashing into the North Shore mountain, said Major Sawtelle.

"However, all our boys are instructed to jump by parachute if they get into a tight spot," said the major.

STAY WITH IT

"However if he knew he might kill many other people if he left his plane, he would decide to stick with it."

Speed of the plane at the time of the crash is hard to estimate. Barlow was short of fuel - he had only enough to last to 12:30 or 12:45 at the latest.

He would be trying to conserve his dwindling supply, hoping for the emergency landing at the airport.

AT 200 MPH

McChord base experts say he would probably be travelling atbout 200 miles per hour at the time of the crash. An F-86 Sabre jet can go better than 600 knots an hour.

U.S. Air Force officials say Barlow was a fully-experienced and "combat-ready" jet pilot.

They also add the plane was in "sound condition."

ROUTINE FLIGHT

Barlow took off from McChord on a routine instrument training flight at 10:25 a.m. on Friday.

As soon as the plane was officially "lost," the finely-tuned machinery of the RCAF swung into action.

Four RCAF planes - two Expeditors, one Canso flying boat and an Otter-a light reconnaisance plane-were sent into the air about 1:30 under the command of search master Squadron-Leader W. M. Fee.

They scourder North Vancouver and the area around the Straits of Georgia.

They covered the area from Lasqueti Island to Point Roberts, said the air officials.

Heavy weather hampered the search and finally forced the planes to return to Sea Island between 4 and 5 p.m.

Also taking part in the search was a Grumman Albatross from McChord Field - an amphibious plane which searched the waters surrounding the area.

All boats in the area were notified.