Found dead after Idaho-bound plane goes missing

Search efforts for a missing aircraft traveling to Grangeville, Idaho, ended after wreckage and the deceased pilot and passenger were found Sunday, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation. Teams located the wreckage in Aeneas Valley, Washington, near Tonasket, after the pilot lost communication with Seattle Center air traffic control. The plane had been flying Saturday from Penticton, British Columbia, to Grangeville. The pilot, Nicholas Grachanin, 61, and passenger Jim Merik were found deceased inside the aircraft, the agency said. Washington State DOT began the search using the aircraft’s final known radar locations and used cell phone forensics to narrow areas, with assistance from the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. The discovery was around 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 11, and families were notified.