Dr. John Richard Hushaw, BHS 1954

 Dr. John Richard Hushaw, BHS 1954

San Bernardino Sun, Sunday, February 6, 1983

2 KILLED IN PLANE CRASH

INDIO, CA – Authorities are investigating a weekend plane crash that killed an ophthalmologist and his nurse as they returned from a clinic.

The victims were Dr. John R. Hushaw, 45, and Nancy June Duncan, 30, both of Palm Desert, Riverside County Coroner’s Investigator Bob Drake said. Hushaw had offices in Palm Desert and Yucca Valley and flew every weekend to the latter office, said Drake.

The bodies were recovered from Hushaw’s twin-engine Beechcraft Baron Saturday after an aircraft in the area picked up an emergency transmission, Riverside County sheriff’s Sgt. Keith Stinson said. Stinson said Hushaw and Ms. Duncan were returning from Yucca Valley to Bermuda Dunes Airport outside Indio when the crash occurred. They were last heard from about 1:30 p.m. Friday, when Hushaw radioed the Palm Springs airport tower that he had Bermuda Dunes in sight.

Orville Mercury Register, Orville, California, Monday, February 7, 1983

BODIES FOUND AFTER PLANE CASH

INDIO, CA – The bodies of a doctor and his nurse were found early Saturday, about 8 ½ hours after their plane crashed into the surrounding foothills Friday night, a Riverside County sheriff’s spokesman said. Dead are Dr. John R. Hushaw, the plane’s pilot, and Nancy June Duncan, 30 both of Palm Desert, said Keith Stinson. The victims and the twin-engine Beachcraft Baron were discovered at 3:30 a.m., 12 miles north of Bermuda Dunes Airport, Stinson said.

Deputies were notified of a possible plane crash at about 7:10 p.m. Friday by Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, which received a report of an emergency transmission from the plane, Stinson said. A plane from the Civil Air Patrol was dispatched to search for the plane and pinpointed the general area of the signal’s origin at about 9 p.m.

With electronic detection equipment, a ground patrol was sent into the area and eventually found the bodies. Weather conditions in the area were cloudy with a slight drizzle, Stinson said. Hushaw, 45, was an ophthalmologist with offices in Rancho Mirage and Yucca Valley. The cause of the crash was unknown and is being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration.

HUSHAW Obit

Desert Sun, Palm Springs, California, Tuesday, February 8, 1983

A memorial service was planned at 1 p.m. today at Palm Desert Community Church for Dr. John Richard Hushaw who died Friday in an airplane accident near Desert Hot Springs. A Palm Desert resident, he was 45. The Rev. Dean Miller was to officiate over the service.

A native of California, Mr. Hushaw had lived in Palm Desert for 14 years. He was employed as an ophthalmologist and eye surgeon, with practices in Rancho Mirage and Yucca Valley.

He is survived by four children, JohnD., Michael L., Christopher S., and Michelle L., all of Palm Desert; his father, Dale Hushaw of Arcadia; his mother, Hazel Hushaw of Palm Desert; one brother, Walter Hushaw of Boulder City, Nevada; and one sister, Dorothy Hekel of San Diego.