Overview
- Joshua Tibbetts, 50, died after his Cessna A185F went down near Schoolhouse Pond in Avon at about 11 a.m. Tuesday.
- He was flying solo on an aerial fish-stocking mission for Maine’s Bureau of Fisheries, a routine low-altitude task for warden pilots.
- An onboard crash sensor sent an automatic alert to dispatch, and crews later reached the wooded site and transferred his remains to the medical examiner.
- The NTSB and FAA have opened a formal investigation that will review radar tracks, maintenance records, weather data, and witness accounts of strong winds and side-to-side motion.
- This is the Warden Service’s first line-of-duty death since 2011 and the 16th in its history, underscoring the risks of small-plane operations in remote terrain where aircraft typically lack flight data recorders.