2 dead in plane crash at Telluride Ski Area
Posted 7:54 pm, August 24, 2016, by David Mitchell
Plane crash at Telluride Ski Area. Photo: San Miguel County Sheriff's Office
TELLURIDE, Colo. — Two people were killed in an airplane crash near Telluride Wednesday. That’s according to the San Miguel County Sheriff.
Officials said a fixed-wing motorized-glider crashed at the Telluride Ski Area. The pilot, 64-year-old Robert Saunders died in the crash at Prospect Basin around 2 p.m. Saunders, a well-known Telluride local, went by the nickname “Glider Bob.” The second man who was on board was not identified.
Employees of Telluride Ski and Golf responded when the heard what the thought was a crash in the area. The two men had died before emergency personnel were able to reach them.
San Miguel County Sheriff Bill Masters said, “This is a terrible tragedy and an enormous loss for the families as well as the entire Telluride community. Telluride has lost another great one.”
A press release from the San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office said “Glider Bob” was the owner and operator of “Glide Telluride” offering year-round glider rides soaring 14-15,000 feet around the region out of the Telluride Regional Airport. According to his website, he has been flying Stemme Motorgliders since 1997.
The NTSB has been notified about the crash and so has the United States Forest Service since it happened on USFS land.
=================================
Date:
24-AUG-2016
Time: 14:00
Type:
Stemme S10-VT
Owner/operator: Private
Registration: N5021
C/n / msn: 11-010
Fatalities: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Other fatalities: 0
Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location: Prospect Basin, Telluride, CO -
United States of America Phase: Unknown
Nature: Unknown
Departure airport:
Destination airport:
Narrative:
The aircraft impacted mountainous terrain in the Prospect Basin area of the Telluride Ski Resort east of Bald Mountain, Colorado. The motorglider sustained substantial damage and the two occupants onboard received fatal injuries.
Sources:
http://kwgn.com/2016/08/24/2-dead-in-plane-crash-at-telluride-ski-area/
http://www.denverpost.com/2016/08/24/fatal-plane-crash-southwest-colorado-telluride/
http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=5021
https://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_cross/7285973814
https://www.google.com/maps/@37.8974822,-107.834046,17z/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en-us
