Search and rescue personnel discovered the body of an Air France pilot who did not show up for his flight shift back from the United States (US) in Sequoia National Park.
Tom Gerbier, a French native from Fontenay-sous-Bois in France, was said to be an avid hiker who came to the national park to climb Mount Whitney, the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States.
According to a statement from Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, the deceased landed in Whitney Portal on October 17, 2023, via the Mountaineering Route and was scheduled to fly on October 18, 2023.
When the Air France pilot failed to show up for work that day, the Inyo County Sheriff's Office initiated a search.
Despite the dispatch of a search and rescue helicopter, there was no evidence of the deceased on October 13, 2023, and ground personnel did not discover signs of a fall on the Mountaineering Route near the peak until October 14, 2023.
A helicopter was dispatched to examine the area known as 'The Notch' of the mountain, and it discovered a motionless hiker who appeared to have fallen roughly 1000 feet.
Tom Gerbier's body was taken to the Tulare County Sheriff's Office, where his identity was established.
The Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks said that this was the second fatality in the area this year.
Air France verified to the San Francisco Chronicle that the pilot was on a stopover in Los Angeles.
"The company offers its most sincere condolences to his family and loved ones," Air France said in a statement.
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