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While making my way southeastward towards the lower 48, I briefly met Patricia Collins, age 78, and Elizabeth Smith, 73, of Placerville, California, and their Mooney airplane adorned with flags from countries it's been piloted to. I immediately recognized this was a special crew and aircraft. An impending weather system hurried my short interaction with the two adventurous and intriguing ladies, but I made a mental note to contact them when I got back home. I was sad to learn, that less than two weeks later, the two were killed in a tragic accident in Washington state. I've learned that Patricia was a very accomplished pilot and flew as volunteer for the last couple decades for the Flying Samaritans, routinely flying to Mexico to transport medical personnel. It sounds like they lived a giving life that touched many people.
Source: http://shaunlunt.typepad.com/shootings/2007/08/final-thoughts-.html
PATRICIA COLLINS - PLACERVILLE, CA 95667 US Plane: MOONEY M20E (5870212) 1966 1235 N9302M LYCOMING/I0360 SERThe pilot of a small plane that crashed in north-central Washington on Saturday night, killing her and a passenger, was a Good Samaritan who had flown dozens of medical workers to Mexico over the years.
The Mother Lode Chapter of Flying Samaritans was established in 1977 and draws active members from Central and Northern California.
Patricia Collins, 78, of Placerville died when the 1966 single-engine Mooney M2OE she was piloting crashed as she attempted to land at the Tonasket Municipal Airport about 9:30 p.m., authorities said.
Collins' passenger, 78-year-old Elizabeth Smith of Placerville, also died in the crash. The Bee was unable to contact Smith's family.
Collins had been involved with the Mother Lode chapter of the Flying Samaritans for the past two decades, flying four or five missions each year to the village of San Quintin, Mexico, about 200 miles south of San Diego, said Alan Rabe, the group's former president.
The Flying Samaritans transport doctors, dentists and other care workers to aid poor families in Mexico.
"She's a fun person on the ground, a hard worker at the clinic and very professional as a pilot," Rabe said. "She's definitely going to be missed."
A group of friends was waiting for Collins and Smith to land at the airport Saturday night, said Okanogan County Sheriff Frank Rogers. Collins tried to land a few times -- even touching down and taking off again at one point, he said.
"Their friends witnessed the crash," Rogers said, calling the crash a "tragic accident." The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Security Board are investigating the cause.
Collins' colleagues with the Flying Samaritans had so much respect for her work, they voted her a lifetime member of the group at their July 10 meeting, President Bill McDavid said.
"We have a lot of pilots of civil aviation in this country, myself included, who certainly would never ever think to travel as extensively as she has with her little plane," McDavid said. "She had a real spirit of adventure."
McDavid said Collins wasn't on a Samaritans mission. He said he had talked with her a month ago and she told him she was planning a vacation to Alaska.
Rabe said he'd be surprised if the crash involved piloting error.
"I've flown with her quite a few times. Every landing, every takeoff is so smooth it gets boring," he said. "She's so good at what she does."
Rabe said Collins had stickers on the side of her plane from every country she visited. He said she flew her tiny Mooney from Placerville to South America and back. He said she was the first woman to fly in a small plane from Alaska to Russia across the Bering Sea.
"That's guts," Rabe said. "In the air, she was always in command."
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By Ryan Lillis - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Story appeared in METRO section, Page B2
