Plane goes down along river bank

A Pensacola man remains in the intensive care unit at Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola following an airplane crash Tuesday afternoon when the plane hit two power lines crossing the Escambia River causing his plane to crash into a sandbar on the river's bank.

The pilot has been identified as Scott Nee by Freddie Wayne McCall Jr., who serves as the Fixed Based Operation Manager for the Brewton Airport.

Emergency personnel were dispatched about 1 p.m. Tuesday when officials realized the airplane that was heading from Brewton to Pensacola had crashed.

McCall, who said his family owns the airplane Nee was flying, credited local emergency responders and the U.S. Coast Guard for saving Nee's life.

"If not for everybody involved, a life would have been lost," McCall said Wednesday afternoon.

McCall described Nee to be in his mid-20s and was a flight instructor out of Pensacola. He said Nee filled up with fuel Tuesday morning in Pensacola and came to the Brewton Airport and did some paper work before heading back to Pensacola.

McCall said he was in Century eating lunch when Air Force Rescue called him saying McCall's plane with the No. N84287 tail numbers was sending out an alert. McCall said the plane was equipped with the alert system that goes off if the plane sustains impact.

"It sends out an alert and then emits a code back to the plane owner," McCall said.

McCall said when he left the Brewton Airport the plane was on the ground. After getting the alert he called the airport and was told the plane had left about 20 minutes ago.

McCall said he headed back to the Brewton Airport and called Pensacola to see if the plane had landed and was told no. He then called Air Force Search and Rescue that emits longitude and latitude coordinates from the emergency signal.

McCall and his son Bo took off from the Brewton Airport and about five minutes later saw the crashed plane on a sandbar next to the river.

"I could see the pilot in the aircraft and we knew he was badly injured but I could see he was alive," McCall said.

He said he first called Pensacola Air Traffic Control to say he needed a LifeFlight helicopter in route, but later found out it couldn't fly due to the weather.

McCall said he then called Brandon Burkett with the Escambia County (Ala.) Sheriff's Office, who in turn called other emergency agencies in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties in Florida.

McCall said the plane crashed 8.5 miles south-west of the Brewton Airport and it appears the plane hit two power lines owned by Power South before crashing.

Although unconfirmed, the plane crash may have been responsible for most of Century to be without power for about three hours Tuesday afternoon.

McCall said Burkett was the first to reach the crash site and make contact with the pilot and an emergency medical technician quickly arrived on the scene.

He said the U.S. Coast Guard sent its helicopter to the scene and the EMT on scene rode with the pilot to Sacred Heart Hospital.

"The true heroes in all of this is the U.S. Coast Guard that flew through thunderstorms that LifeFlight wouldn't do," McCall said. "As the owner of the plane and a friend of the pilot, I'm eternally grateful to the Escambia County (Ala.) Sheriff's Office, Santa Rosa County and the EMS crews. If not for everybody on board a life would have been lost."

Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Joe McCurdy also stated the pilot suffered serious injuries in the crash and said it appeared the plane had hit power lines before crashing.

McCurdy and McCall both said the Federal Aviation Administration will be conducting an investigation to determine the exact cause of crash.