The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1946-12-12
H. A. H0uoh
Loses Life in
Plane Crash
Flying Piper Cruiser to
Libby When the Machine
Dove into Lake McGregOr
ACCIDENT OCCURRED
TUESDAY AFTERNOON

A plane crash Tuesday evening
took the life of Hamilton Hough,
age &c. one of Libby's experienced
filters. The cause of the fatal crash
is unknown as Hough was flying
alone at the time of the accident,
which occurred when his plane
plunged head-on into McGregor
Lake, approximately one-half mile
west of Boisvert's Camp.
Russell Deist, Libby flying in
Structor and Hough had gone by
plane Tuesday afternoon to Mis-
Soula to bring back Piper Cruiser
belonging to Deist, which had been
left in that city for installation of
landing lights. Deist was leading
on the return trip, Hough follow
ing with the second plane.
Deist noticed the weather closing
in and decided to fly back to Kalis-
pell for the night According to
prearranged agreement, he signalled
his companion, showing his navi- 4
CATION lights as he circled Hough +
did not follow him, so he circled
his plane again and this time his
friend caught the signal and turned
back. Deist flew on to Kalispell
NAANAN iAC AJCNLCQ 10 meet I1OuRD.
Why the Libby pilot was unable
70 ION Delst in Kalispell may never
De known unless examination of the
wrecked plane by CAA officials re-
Veals the reason for the crash land {
ing. The actual crash was described I
by Howard Wagner, owner of ,
Happy's Inn, who was on the high |
way and saw the accident which I
occurred at 4:45 o'clock.
Waegner's story told to Harold s
Gompf of the Gompf Funeral Home, 5
was substantially as follows: He 8
saw the plane heading east, appar- v
entity preparing to attempt a land I
ing on the highway. The pilot saw v
Waegner's car on the road, and ap-
parently realizing he could not land 6
without crashing into the car, raised [
and swung out over the lake, clear
ing the trees by about five or six
hundred feet. The plane made two
or three IS" turns, according to
Wagner, and then dove nose down
INTO the waters of the lake.
The man on the shore saw Hough
crawl out of the plane and work
MS way toward the tail of the
machine, when he lost sight of him
n the deepening gloom.
News of the crash was phoned M
rom Boisvert's, both to Libby and M
o Kalispell, the accident occurring r
n Flathead County. A deputy sher- GO
# from Kalispell, three state pa eli
rolmen including Patrolman Riddle q,
rom Libby, Sheriff Frank Baney,
abby, and five members of the r
libby fire department hurried to !
he scene of the tragedy, and began h
he long search fog the f1ier's body Il
nd the wreckage of the plane.
The search continued throughout
ne hours of the night and all day MI
till 200 p. m. when "a,
lough's body was found some M
30 feet from the shore, and the VIZ
lane was recovered about 100 feet Il
lrther out in the lake. tio
Hamilton Hough, who was a son or.
Mr. and Mrs. Harry Hough for ba
lerly of Libby but now of 1920 The
ermosa Way, Menlo Park, Calf, flo
also survived by his widow and
'ur sisters. He was one of the wo
larter members of the Libby Fly ore
G Club and was one of the first b.,
cal filters to receive his pilots w
,ense. He was veteran of the Fa1
te war. 80
An obituary will be published in wo
sXt weeks issue of The Western the
ews. NJ
The funeral will be Saturday at W.
p. m. at the Gompf Funeral Home sta,
it'll The Rev. VIM. c. Stearns Of Fal
,iating. De,