After the Ark of the Covenant was recovered, Dietrich planned to transport the treasure back to Germany in the plane, and the plane was prepared for takeoff. However, Indiana Jones and Marion Ravenwood destroyed the plane in an attempt to commandeer it, killing the German Mechanic and the pilot in the process. With the plane destroyed and Jones on the loose, Dietrich and Belloq decided to move the Ark by truck from the camp instead.