73-year-old pilot found dead in submerged plane in Kawartha Lakes

A 73-year-old pilot has been found dead after search crews located his submerged homebuilt aircraft in a lake within Ontario's Kawartha Lakes region, concluding a days-long search that began when he failed to return from a flight last week. The Ontario Provincial Police said the pilot's body and the wreckage of the single-engine plane were found in Wolfe Lake, situated within Queen Elizabeth II Wildlands Provincial Park, northwest of Peterborough, on August 18. The pilot, identified by Durham Regional Police as David, departed from Oshawa Executive Airport at approximately 8:30 a.m. local time on Friday, August 14. He was expected to return to the airport an hour later but did not. Family members reported him missing, prompting a multi-agency search operation led by the OPP. An extensive search effort was launched involving the Trenton Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, the OPP including its City of Kawartha Lakes detachment and specialized units, and Ontario's Ministry of Natural Resources. The operation first located aircraft debris in Wolfe Lake on August 16.