From staff reports
A Laughlin instructor pilot died this weekend from injuries suffered in a private aircraft accident 27 miles northwest of Del Rio.
The pilot, Air Force Maj. Ryan Mudry, was flying his aircraft alone.
The cause of the crash is under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board, who have been scouring the site for the last three days analyzing the Luscombe 8F’s wreckage.
The plane, built in 1949, has a cruising speed of 128 miles per hour.
The 47th Flying Training Wing shared the following statement Wednesday morning.
“Ryan was an outstanding officer, instructor pilot, and a combat experienced leader who always stepped up when called…the Wing and our Air Force will miss him greatly,” said Col Craig Prather, 47th Flying Training Wing commander “Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends as they cope with this painful loss.”
Mudry was named the 47th Flying Training Wing’s Field Grade Officer of the Year months earlier, was the 47th Operations Support Squadron Director of Operations, a T-38 Instructor Pilot and a graduate of the Air Force Academy.
The ranch owner found the plane’s wreckage Sunday afternoon and called the Val Verde County Sheriff’s Office, who dispatched deputies and a Justice of the Peace.
Later, the Val Verde County Fire Department was called to the scene to help with recovery efforts.
