Incident Name: forest fire near Richlands, Onslow County, NC
Date: May 15, 1981
Personnel: Merton Jackson
Age: 57
Agency/Organization: North Carolina Division of Forest Resources
Position: aerial firefighter
Summary: North Carolina Division of Forest Resources pilot Merton Jackson died on May 15, 1981, when his single-engine spotter plane crashed near the edge of a 30-acre forest fire near Richlands, in Onslow County. He was flown by helicopter to Onslow Memorial Hospital in Jacksonville where he was pronounced dead on arrival. (from NC Fallen website: legeros.com/history/fallen/)
Maps
Crashed near Richlands, Onslow County, NC
Onslow Memorial Hospital, Jacksonville, North Carolina
{mosmap lat=’34.763484’|lon=’-77.384028’|marker=’0’|text=’Onslow Memorial Hospital, Jacksonville, NC’}
Reports, Documentation, Lessons Learned
- Concise Information from the NTSB, FAA, AAP and research by the WLF Staff:
- May 15, 1981, AAP Memorial says he flew Tanker 34
- 1 killed, Merton Jackson
- Operator: North Carolina Division of Forest Resources
- Type: single engine spotter plane
- Location: near Richlands, Onslow County, NC
- FAA Registration # unknown
- NTSB # unknown, no record
- To look for yourself, consult the NTSB online lookup Utility
- North Carolina Deaths: Merton Roy Jackson
Wildlandfire.com Links:
Media Articles and Reports
Photos, Videos, & Tributes
- Buried in Evergreen Memorial Park, Athens, GA
- North Carolina Fallen Firefighter Foundation: Merton R Jackson
- USFA Memorial Database: Merton R Jackson
Contributors to this article: Tim Stubbs, aka NM Air Bear, Georgia Peach, Mellie
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