GREAT FALLS — Three people died when a small plane crashed south of West Yellowstone last week, according to a news release from the Gallatin County Sheriff's Office on Monday, July 21, 2025.
At about 1:41 p.m. on Friday, July 18 West Yellowstone Dispatch received a call regarding a possible airplane crash. The U.S. Department of Transportation Aero Division reported that an aircraft that had departed the West Yellowstone Airport with three people on board just before midnight on the night of Thursday, July 17 could not be located.
Utilizing the last location of an occupants’ smart watch, two search planes were sent to search for the missing plan.
At 2:13 p.m. the search planes confirmed the plane had been found, and that it had crashed in dense timber just south of the town of West Yellowstone near South Plateau Road.
Gallatin County Sheriff Search & Rescue deployed personnel to respond to the crash site. SAR teams including the West Yellowstone Section, Big Sky Section, Heli Team, and Comms team responded to the scene. SAR members found the downed airplane and confirmed all three occupants were deceased.
Their bodies were recovered from the plane and taken by helicopter where their remains were turned over to a Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office deputy coroner.
Gallatin County Sheriff Dan Springer said in a news release on Monday that the three victims have been identified as 60-year-old Rodney Conover and his 23-year-old daughter Madison Conover, both of Tennessee; and 55-year-old Kurt Enoch Robey of Utah. Next of kin notifications have been made to the respective families.
The plane was reported to be a Piper PA-28-180 Cherokee B.
The cause of the crash is being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.
Sheriff Dan Springer thanked all the agencies who participated in the location and recovery, and the continued investigation into the cause of the crash.
Assisting agencies include the Hebgen Basin Rural Fire District, U.S. Forest Service, Federal Aviation Administration, and National Transportation Safety Board.
