08282014 - Search For Missing Pilot Continues Published Aug. 28, 2014 BARNES AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, 104TH FIGHTER WING , Westfield, Mass. -- The search for the missing 104th Fighter Wing pilot continues through the night in the Washington National Forest near Deerfield Valley, Virginia. An F-15C Eagle assigned to the 104th Fighter Wing crashed at approximately 9:30 a.m. Wednesday; radio contact with the pilot was lost about 25 minutes earlier. As of 11:15 p.m. Wednesday, approximately 10 search-and-rescue teams were on the ground searching along logging roads, fire trails and forest roads. The terrain is too treacherous for off-road ground searches in the dark, according to Corinne Geller, Virginia State Police Public Relations Manager. As many as four helicopters have been conducting aerial night searches, with additional assets en route. Throughout the day Wednesday, at least 100 state police, sheriff's deputies and fire and rescue personnel had been on scene, along with up to seven helicopters supporting aerial search missions, said Geller. The Air Force has secured the crash site, she continued. The search for the missing pilot and the investigation into the crash are ongoing. #30# Barnes Air National Guard Base 104th Fighter Wing - Public Affairs Office 175 Falcon Drive, Westfield, MA 01085 Contacts: 104fw.pa@ang.af.mil Office: 413-568-9151 x698-1263 The 104th Fighter Wing is equipped with the F-15 Eagle. One mission of the 104th is Aerospace Control Alert (ACA), providing armed fighters ready to scramble in a moment's notice to protect the Northeast from any airborne threat. The unit is responsible for protecting a quarter of the nation's population and one third of the Gross Domestic Product.