Search finds no trace of former Medford man

Ed Morret and student pilot Tim Morgan disappeared after they took off Friday afternoon from Felts Field in suburban Spokane Valley. Morgan and his wife, Leslie, were Medford High School sweethearts -- Class of '76.

"We're just waiting to see, hoping for the best," said Morgan's sister, Teresa Smith of Eagle Point. "He knows how to survive out there and he's got his Leatherman tool."

Searchers had received no clues either through radio contact or distress signals as to the location of the two-seat Cessna 152 trainer. Morret and Morgan did not file a flight plan because they were making an instructional flight.

Their rented plane, which has a range of about 300 miles, was last seen flying east from the airfield in the valley east of Spokane, according to Karl Moore of Washington Civil Air Patrol.

Dozens of volunteer searchers have made more than 300 flights over four days across a wide area of Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho, Moore said. Searchers have concentrated most heavily on areas east and south of Spokane.

Tim Morgan, 40, grew up in west Medford, and most of his family still lives in the Rogue Valley. A highly skilled printer for Sterling Business Forms, he transferred to Spokane about 10 years ago and only recently left the company to help some co-workers establish their own shop.

In Medford, members of the Morgan family described Tim Morgan as a devoted husband and father of two who learned survival tactics from years of service in the National Guard.

"If there's any way to survive, he will, and it's a good time of year too," said his stepmother, Jeannie.

Moore said Morgan and Morret took off in clear weather Friday for a final "pre-test" before Morgan could seek his full pilot's license. He already had a solo license.

Morgan had been flying for about a year and loved the feeling of freedom it gave him, said brother-in-law Greg Smith. The two spoke for an hour last month -- mostly about the wild blue yonder.

"He said you get to the point where you know what you're doing and you stop worrying about crashing," Smith said. "He didn't seem to be afraid."

As the hours tick by without word either way, Smith said the family is trying to stay positive and hopes Morgan has a great tale to tell.

"Tim was a helluva nice guy," Smith said. "He wasn't -- he is."