Patrick Coyle, bottom right, at a mini-school reunion in Dec. 2018.
A former local resident-turned-pilot with ties to Lansdale Catholic High School is presumed dead, following a plane crash in Alaska last week.
According to Anchorage Daily News, on Tuesday, Jan. 29, a medevac plane that was flying from Anchorage to Kake, Alaska, with three crew members on board went missing. Among those on board was pilot Patrick Coyle, 63, whose twin brother, Bill, graduated from Lansdale Catholic in 1973.
“While Pat was not an LC grad, he was always part of LC’s Class of 1973,” reads a statement from Lansdale Catholic, via their Facebook page, adding that Coyle had eight other siblings graduate from the high school between 1974 and 1984.
In addition to Coyle, two other crew members were on board. Flight nurse Stacie Rae Morse, 30, was pregnant and was due to have her baby in April. Flight paramedic Margaret Langston, 43, was just recently married.
“We would appreciate prayers that Pat, Stacie and Margaret will be recovered quickly, and that comfort and healing will be provided to the families,” the statement reads.
The search for survivors was suspended briefly following a news release from the Coast Guard, but it resumed independent of the Coast Guard after debris was found and the plane company, Guardian Flight, came to the conclusion that it was a wing from the missing plane. The find prompted a search, during which search party members found more debris, but no more debris was found following that search.
According to KFQD Talk Radio, at the time of the crash, the crew members were presumed dead. However, a spokesperson for Guardian Flight said that they will continue to search for the bodies to give closure to their families. Coyle reportedly had several thousand hours of flight experience.
After the crash, Guardian Flight stopped service, but they have partially resumed service. The company will update its website as more service is resumed at their bases across Alaska since many people rely on the service Guardian Flight provides.
Coyle was recently in the area for the holidays, and attended a mini-high school reunion in December.
“We are so happy that Pat was able to visit with many of you at the mini-reunion over the holidays,” said Paula Coyle, Bill’s wife, via Facebook. “It meant a great deal to him that so many of you came to see him. We know that it was a highlight of his last trip home, and a wonderful memory in a life well-lived.”
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