PHOENIX (Reuters) - A small plane flying from Arizona to Colorado crashed northeast of the Phoenix area, killing all four people on board, sheriff’s department and aviation officials said on Tuesday.

The Cessna 210 crashed late on Monday in steep, rugged terrain about 15 miles north of Payson, Arizona, authorities said. The cause has not been determined.

Earlier, Gila County Sheriff Adam Shepherd said by telephone that rescuers searching the crash site located three victims in the morning, but the fourth person aboard the plane had yet to be found. Shepherd later confirmed the fourth fatality.

The victims were not immediately identified.

The plane was en route from Scottsdale, Arizona, to Telluride, Colorado when the crash occurred.

Deputies were able to locate the downed plane by asking a phone company to “ping” the cell phone of one of the people aboard the plane, Shepherd said. In general, phone companies can triangulate a phone’s location using networking satellites or communications towers.

Deputies then spotted the wreckage with help from the Arizona Department of Public Safety and the U.S. Air Force Civil Air Patrol.

A spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration said the agency was investigating the crash along with the National Transportation Safety Board.</s>PAYSON, Ariz. (AP) – Searchers in Arizona found the bodies of four members of a family Tuesday in the wreckage of a small plane that crashed on a flight from Scottsdale to Telluride, Colorado, officials said.

Debris from the single-engine Cessna 210 was spotted north of Payson on the rugged Mogollon Rim, Gila County Sheriff Adam Shepherd said.

The plane had been reported missing Monday night. The cause of the crash wasn’t immediately known, authorities said.

The sheriff’s office verified the plane’s tail number matched Federal Aviation Administration records identifying the owner as Eric Falbe of Scottsdale.

Falbe, 44, was a lawyer who specialized in real estate mediation.

His law partner confirmed that Falbe was aboard the downed plane along with his wife, Carrie, and his two daughters from a previous marriage.

The girls – 14-year-old Victoria and 12-year-old Skylar – attended Cicero Preparatory Academy in Scottsdale.

“Our sincerest condolences go out to the Falbe family for their tragic loss,” school officials said in a statement. “Grief counselors will be available when school returns Monday.”

The sheriff’s office was notified about the missing plane by Scottsdale police.

According to the police report, a man told authorities his 31-year-old daughter, son-in-law and two girls didn’t check in after planning to fly to Telluride.

The four were on a yearly trip they always take around the Christmas holidays, according to relatives.

Police started a search for the family’s cellphone signal, and one was detected near Payson. A state police helicopter, the Civil Air Patrol and sheriff’s searchers on the ground worked together to find the plane.

Rescuers had to hike nearly an hour to the site, Shepherd said.

“The terrain up there is just really super rugged,” he said. “It’s pretty rough, steep, straight up and down.”

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>Searchers in Arizona found the bodies of four members of a family Tuesday in the wreckage of a small plane that crashed on a flight from Scottsdale to Telluride, Colorado, officials said.

Debris from the single-engine Cessna 210 was spotted north of Payson on the rugged Mogollon Rim, Gila County Sheriff Adam Shepherd said.

The plane had been reported missing Monday night. The cause of the crash wasn't immediately known, authorities said.

The sheriff's office verified the plane's tail number matched Federal Aviation Administration records identifying the owner as Eric Falbe of Scottsdale.

Falbe, 44, was a lawyer who specialized in real estate mediation.

His law partner confirmed that Falbe was aboard the downed plane along with his wife, Carrie, and his two daughters from a previous marriage.

The girls — 14-year-old Victoria and 12-year-old Skylar — attended Cicero Preparatory Academy in Scottsdale.

"Our sincerest condolences go out to the Falbe family for their tragic loss," school officials said in a statement. "Grief counselors will be available when school returns Monday."

The sheriff's office was notified about the missing plane by Scottsdale police.

According to the police report, a man told authorities his 31-year-old daughter, son-in-law and two girls didn't check in after planning to fly to Telluride.

The four were on a yearly trip they always take around the Christmas holidays, according to relatives.

Police started a search for the family's cellphone signal, and one was detected near Payson. A state police helicopter, the Civil Air Patrol and sheriff's searchers on the ground worked together to find the plane.

Rescuers had to hike nearly an hour to the site, Shepherd said.

"The terrain up there is just really super rugged," he said. "It's pretty rough, steep, straight up and down."</s>Searchers in Arizona found the bodies of four members of a family Tuesday in the wreckage of a small plane that crashed on a flight from Scottsdale to Telluride, Colorado, officials said.

Debris from the single-engine Cessna 210 was spotted north of Payson on the rugged Mogollon Rim, Gila County Sheriff Adam Shepherd said. The plane had been reported missing Monday night.

The plane carried two adults and two teenage girls, according to a Scottsdale police report. Their names and city of residence weren't released, but officials at Cicero Preparatory Academy in Scottsdale said in a statement that the two girls were students there.

The sheriff's office was notified about the missing plane by Scottsdale police.

The police report says a man told police his 31-year-old daughter, 44-year-old son-in-law and two girls, 12 and 14, didn't check in after planning to fly to Telluride.

Police redacted some details on the report, but it appears the girls were from the man's first marriage.

Police started a search for the family's cellphone signal, and one was detected near Payson. A state police helicopter, the Civil Air Patrol and sheriff's searchers on the ground worked together to find the plane.

Rescuers had to hike nearly an hour to the site, Shepherd said.

"The terrain up there is just really super rugged," he said. "It's pretty rough, steep, straight up and down."</s>The plane was en route from Scottsdale, Arizona, to Telluride, Colorado when the crash occurred.</s>Searchers in Gila County, Arizona, have found a fourth body inside the wreckage of a small plane that was reported overdue on a flight from Scottsdale to Telluride, Colorado.

 

 The wreckage was spotted north of Payson on the rugged Mogollon Rim early Tuesday morning. Gila County Sheriff Adam Shepherd said Scottsdale police advised his office about the missing Cessna 210 just before 10 p.m. Monday.

 

 The plane reportedly carried two adults and two children but only three bodies were initially found. The sheriff's office later reported the fourth body had been located.

 

 A Scottsdale police report said the plane carried a mother, father, and two teenage girls.

 

 Shepherd said rescuers had to hike nearly an hour to the site after the wreckage was spotted from the air. No identities have been released.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>DENVER — An airplane with two adults and two children on board that was bound for Telluride was found crashed near Payson, Arizona Tuesday.

The plane left Scottsdale, Arizona Monday morning. A woman called San Miguel County, Colorado emergency dispatchers saying she was concerned that her family members had not yet arrived in Telluride.

“The pilot of the Cessna 210 aircraft did not file a flight plan, and the parties had not been heard from,” a statement from the San Miguel County sheriff’s office said.

“A cell phone was pinged and deputies, along with the Arizona Department of Public Safety ranger helicopter and the Air Force Civil Air Patrol located the downed aircraft northwest of Washington Park, north of Payson, Arizona at 5:35 a.m. Tuesday,” a press release from the Gila County, Arizona sheriff’s office said.

The private plane went down with a 31-year-old woman, her 44-year-old husband and his two daughters from a previous marriage. They were 12 and 14 years old.

San Miguel County Sheriff Bill Masters said, “Our thoughts are with the families of the individuals that perished in this tragic accident.”</s>PAYSON, Ariz. — Searchers in Gila County, Arizona, have found three bodies inside the wreckage of a small plane that was reported overdue on a flight from Scottsdale to Telluride, Colorado.

County Sheriff Adam Shepherd said it was spotted crashed north of Payson on the rugged Mogollon (MUH’-ghi-ohn) Rim early Tuesday morning. The sheriff’s office was advised of the missing Cessna 210 just before 10 p.m. Monday.

The plane reportedly carried two adults and two children but Shepherd said only three bodies have been found so far. The sheriff said there’s no sign anyone walked away from the crash and a fourth body might be in the wreckage.

Shepherd said rescuers had to hike nearly an hour to the site after the wreckage was spotted from the air. No identities have been released.</s>Searchers in Gila County, Arizona, have found four bodies inside the wreckage of a small plane that was reported overdue on a flight from Scottsdale to Telluride, Colorado.

County Sheriff Adam Shepherd said it was spotted crashed north of Payson on the rugged Mogollon Rim early Tuesday morning. The sheriff's office was advised of the missing Cessna 210 just before 10 p.m. Monday.

The plane reportedly carried two adults and two children.

Shepherd said rescuers had to hike nearly an hour to the site after the wreckage was spotted from the air. No identities have been released.</s>PAYSON, Ariz. - Crews searching the wreckage of a small plane crash north of Payson Tuesday morning discovered four bodies inside.

The Cessna 210 was reported overdue on its flight from Scottsdale to Telluride, Colorado.

A Scottsdale police report said the plane carried a woman, man and two teenage girls, 12 and 14 years old.

Scottsdale lawyer Michael Maledon confirmed Tuesday afternoon that his law partner Eric Falbe and Falbe's family were the four people killed in a small plane crash near Payson Tuesday morning.

The Great Hearts Academies, a charter school network, released the following statement:

"Our sincerest condolences go out to the Falbe family for their tragic loss, and to our grieving Cicero Prep students and teachers. Great Hearts will make grief counselors available for both employees and students when school resumes on Monday."

According to the police report, it was a trip the family made every year and Scottsdale police were called to the Scottsdale Airport where a man was looking for his son-in-law, daughter and two grandchildren.

Their private plane had not arrive at their destination.

The man told police it was not unlikely for them to decide to drive at the last minute, but a photo sent through Snapchat from one of the girl's cellphones to her mother confirmed to police they decided to fly.

According to the police report, information later obtained by the investigators showed the plane ascended from Scottsdale and quickly descended off the radar near Payson.

Pings on the family cellphones placed them approximately 14 miles east of Strawberry, Arizona where a DPS ranger located a possible crash site.

Three bodies were initially found during a search of the wreckage.

The Gila County Sheriff's Office located the fourth body later in the day.

The investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing.
Four people are killed in the crash of a Cessna 210 into rugged terrain on Mogollon Rim near Payson, Arizona. The plane had been traveling from Scottsdale, Arizona to Telluride, Colorado.