Missing Aircraft
Possibly Northeast of Augusta, Maine – May 2, 1972
At 8:30 a.m. on the morning of May 2, 1972, Lewis “Billy” Hogan, Jr., (28), took off from Danbury, Connecticut, in a new yellow and white, single-engine, Champion Citabria, aircraft, Reg. No. N11655. His destination was Houlton Airport in Houlton, Maine. Houlton is a small town close to the Canadian border in northeastern Maine.
While in route Hogan encountered bad weather and became lost. His plane was equipped with a radio navigation system that relied on ground based radio beacons. At the time he was passing over Maine, the beacon at Augusta, (according to the Maine Civil Air Patrol), was reportedly not working. Investigators later speculated that Hogan became lost when he switched from the Kennebunk beacon to the Augusta Beacon.
As Hogan ran low on fuel he radioed a distress call asking for directions to the nearest airport. The call was was received by the control tower at Portland, Maine. Hogan’s plane reportedly disappeared from radar somewhere Bangor and Rockland. Despite the intense search that followed, the plane and Mr. Hogan have never been found.
Volunteer searchers continue to look for the missing aircraft to this day.
There is a Facebook page dedicated to finding Mr. Hogan. To see it, click here: https://www.facebook.com/Citabria1972/
Sources:
Bangor Daily News, “The Search Isn’t Over For A Maine Pilot Missing Since 1972”, August 22, 2024.
The County, “Brother Of Downed Pilot Asks Hunters To Look For Wreckage”, September 9, 2018.
NTSB brief, number NYC72@AN1YZ
