A single-engine plane crashed a half-mile to 1 mile east of the runway at Yampa Valley Regional Airport this morning. Two fatalities have been confirmed, but their identities are being withheld pending family notifcation.
West Routt Fire Protection District Chief Bryan Rickman said the airplane, thought to be a Pilatus PC-12/45 fixed-wing, single-engine aircraft, took off from YVRA at about 9:40 a.m. en route to Chino, Calif.
"We never heard from it again," Rickman said.
YVRA officials were contacted by air traffic controllers at the Denver Center who wondered where the plane was. Rickman said the pilot of the plane never established contact with the Denver Center, which typically doesn't pick up planes originating from Northwest Colorado on radar until they reach about 10,000 feet. Rickman then confirmed with YVRA officials that the plane had not returned to the Hayden airport.
A short time later, Rickman said he received a call from a Galaxy Aviation employee who was driving along County Road 51 and observed a fire in the middle of a snowy field. Rickman responded to the scene and walked through thigh-deep snow to the fire, which he said originated from the plane crash.
Rickman said there were two people on board, and both were killed as a result of the "high-impact" crash.
County Coroner Rob Ryg said the identities of the deceased have been confirmed, but are being withheld pending notification of the family. Ryg said the victims were from California but own a home in Steamboat Springs.
The plane is registered to Rooney Consulting & Aviation LLC out of Brandon, Ore., according to Federal Aviation Administration records. William Rooney is the registered manager of Rooney Consulting & Aviation. There is no local phone number for a William Rooney, but published Routt County real estate transactions indicate a William P. Rooney Jr. and Debra Ann Rooney purchased a Steamboat Springs condo in May 2005 and a home in the Big Valley Ranch subdivision in May 2007.
The 2004 Pilatus PC-12/45 is a 12-seat turbo-prop plane.
After confirming the crash, Rickman returned to the site — a privately owned wheat field — in the YVRA snowcat with a team of six firefighters to extinguish the blaze. Routt County Coroner Rob Ryg also responded to the crash site to aid with recovery efforts.
Rickman said a National Transportation Safety Board investigator is scheduled to arrive in Hayden tomorrow to examine the crash site and begin the investigation.
According to FlightAware, a Web-based flight tracking service for commercial and private aircraft, the Pilatus PC-12/45 flew from Chino to YVRA on Thursday, arriving at 11:22 a.m. The flight took about 2 1/2 hours.
Today's deadly crash comes just less than three weeks after Routt County residents Joe and Suzette Brumleve were killed in a single-engine plane crash near YVRA. The Brumleves were flying from Hutchinson, Kan., to Hayden when their plane went down in snowy conditions about 10 miles west of the runway at YVRA. A memorial service for the Brumleves was held Friday at Christian Heritage School.
Steamboatpilot.com will update this story as more details become available.
West Routt Fire Protection District Chief Bryan Rickman said the airplane, thought to be a Pilatus PC-12/45 fixed-wing, single-engine aircraft, took off from YVRA at about 9:40 a.m. en route to Chino, Calif.
"We never heard from it again," Rickman said.
YVRA officials were contacted by air traffic controllers at the Denver Center who wondered where the plane was. Rickman said the pilot of the plane never established contact with the Denver Center, which typically doesn't pick up planes originating from Northwest Colorado on radar until they reach about 10,000 feet. Rickman then confirmed with YVRA officials that the plane had not returned to the Hayden airport.
A short time later, Rickman said he received a call from a Galaxy Aviation employee who was driving along County Road 51 and observed a fire in the middle of a snowy field. Rickman responded to the scene and walked through thigh-deep snow to the fire, which he said originated from the plane crash.
Rickman said there were two people on board, and both were killed as a result of the "high-impact" crash.
County Coroner Rob Ryg said the identities of the deceased have been confirmed, but are being withheld pending notification of the family. Ryg said the victims were from California but own a home in Steamboat Springs.
The plane is registered to Rooney Consulting & Aviation LLC out of Brandon, Ore., according to Federal Aviation Administration records. William Rooney is the registered manager of Rooney Consulting & Aviation. There is no local phone number for a William Rooney, but published Routt County real estate transactions indicate a William P. Rooney Jr. and Debra Ann Rooney purchased a Steamboat Springs condo in May 2005 and a home in the Big Valley Ranch subdivision in May 2007.
The 2004 Pilatus PC-12/45 is a 12-seat turbo-prop plane.
After confirming the crash, Rickman returned to the site — a privately owned wheat field — in the YVRA snowcat with a team of six firefighters to extinguish the blaze. Routt County Coroner Rob Ryg also responded to the crash site to aid with recovery efforts.
Rickman said a National Transportation Safety Board investigator is scheduled to arrive in Hayden tomorrow to examine the crash site and begin the investigation.
According to FlightAware, a Web-based flight tracking service for commercial and private aircraft, the Pilatus PC-12/45 flew from Chino to YVRA on Thursday, arriving at 11:22 a.m. The flight took about 2 1/2 hours.
Today's deadly crash comes just less than three weeks after Routt County residents Joe and Suzette Brumleve were killed in a single-engine plane crash near YVRA. The Brumleves were flying from Hutchinson, Kan., to Hayden when their plane went down in snowy conditions about 10 miles west of the runway at YVRA. A memorial service for the Brumleves was held Friday at Christian Heritage School.
Steamboatpilot.com will update this story as more details become available.
