WASHINGTON -- The National Transportation Safety Board has released the results of its preliminary investigation into the crash of a single-engine plane near Central City that killed a Carbondale, Colo. resident last week.

According to the NTSB report, pilot Barry Maggert, 47, was flying the single-engine Cessna 182 from Glenwood Springs to Boulder, Colo., and was carrying a passenger, Jonathan Holton, 23.

The plane crashed into a mountainside west of Blackhawk on May 8, killing Maggert and seriously injuring Holton.

In a statement provided to the NTSB, Holton said that at 16,000 feet above sea level, the airplane entered clouds with light snow after they passed Eagle County Airport. The airplane had difficultly maintaining altitude and the engine began to sputter.

Holton told the NTSB that the Maggert stated that they were experiencing a "mixture problem" and he began adjusting the mixture control. The airplane began descending as Maggert attempted to troubleshoot the engine malfunction.

Holton said that the airplane would "nose over" as Maggert attempted to maintain control the aircraft. He continued to fly the airplane until it hit a mountain in Gilpin County at 10,400 feet.

Holton managed to get out of the wreckage and pulled Maggert free, then called for help on his cell phone, but he did not know exactly where he was. An all-out search was initiated and the KMGH helicopter, Airtracker7, discovered the accident site. The crash site was heavily timbered and there was no place for the helicopter to land so rescue crews were directed to the site by the helicopter crew.

A Black Hawk helicopter from Buckley Air Force base later hovered over the site while rescuers winched Holton into the aircraft. He was flown to a Denver hospital with a broken ankle.

Maggert's body was recovered the next day by ground rescue crews.

The wreckage of the plane was found upright, with all major components accounted for, breached fuel tanks with fuel still in them and a crushed horizontal stabilizer and wings, according to the NTSB. The wreckage will be recovered and flown to a secure facility for further examination.

"The fuselage was crushed on the pilot’s side and the engine was partially buried into the snow and soil," the NTSB said.

The NTSB will release another factual report in approximately 9 months and a final report with probable cause in 12-18 months.

Maggert was flying to Glenwood Springs to Boulder to attend his son's graduation at the University of Colorado.