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SALMON ARM — Shuswap Search and Rescue say they are “amazed” that a pilot only suffered minor injuries after his plane went down in the west slope of Mount Ida in Salmon Arm on Friday night.

Shuswap SAR had a joint rescue coordinator in a Buffalo aircraft flying overhead trying to locate the downed aircraft. Sometime after midnight they discovered a heavily damaged aircraft and its pilot, who managed to walk away from the scene.

Bill Yearwood of the Transportation Safety Board said a student pilot took off from the Salmon Arm Regional Airport on a nighttime training flight and ran into some trees.

The pilot, who is in his early 20s, was transported to Kelowna General Hospital.

“I just really am amazed that this young man is walking,” said John Schut of Shuswap Search and Rescue.

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