Officials confirmed that a Colorado resident was one of the pilots of a Boeing 757 that crashed Tuesday morning in Pennsylvania. Jason Dahl, 43, of Ken Caryl Valley was in the cockpit of United Flight #93 when it departed from Newark Airport just across the Hudson River from New York City, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department. The flight was bound for San Francisco, but crashed just southeast of Pittsburgh. After takeoff, officials received a request from the aircraft to change its flight plan from San Francisco to Washington, D.C., ABC News reported. The Newark-to-San Francisco flight reportedly diverted its route near Pittsburgh and ignored calls from Pittsburgh International Airport controllers. There was speculation that the pilot may have died a hero by purposely crashing the plane. The plane crashed around 10 a.m. in a wooded area about 80 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, and just north of Somerset County Airport. U.S. officials speaking on condition of anonymity told the Associated Press that the Secret Service told the White House that the plane may have been headed for Camp David in nearby Maryland. Fearing the White House also might be a target, the Secret Service diverted President Bush, who was in Florida at the time of the attacks, to Louisiana and Nebraska while they assessed the threat.

Reaction

Dahl left behind a wife and son, Matt. The pilot's family released a statement Thursday to the media that read: "The family and friends of Captain Jason Dahl mourn the loss of a father, husband, friend, and hero. Jason Dahl was a professional pilot with a true love of flying. We join the nation in mourning the loss of so many." Mildred Dahl, the pilot's mother, spoke about the shock of the family's loss. "It's hard to believe, but we've just got to accept it. It's happened. I can't bring him back, but he did what he loved to do and the responsibility of doing it, so that's how I have to accept it," she said. Friends and neighbors were devastated. "He's going to be missed. He was truly loved by everyone. He was a wonderful guy. He helped so many people with construction projects. He was not only an incredibly intelligent individual, but he was very talented," neighbor Joy Aden said. "I guess my main concern is for Matt, the son," neighbor Lori Dubetz said. Officials at Somerset County Airport confirmed the crash occurred at a strip mine in Stonycreek Township, about 60 miles east of Pittsburgh. No survivors were reported by a UPMC Stat Medevac crew observing the scene. Officials have said that there were 38 passengers and seven crew members on board. "If you have a problem in the cockpit, he's one of those guys you want helping you, or leading the way," said Capt. Brian Killian, of Denver, who knew Dahl for 10 years. Killian, of Denver, said he learned of Dahl's death from another pilot. "He told me and I just had to put the phone down," he said. Dahl was an evaluator who determined whether trainees were ready to take command of United passenger jets, Killian said. "Not only was he good at what we call stick-and-rudder skills as a pilot, but he was very good at the thinking part as well," Killian said. "You could trust him to make the right call." Killian didn't know which plane Dahl was on but said that he may have known the pilots of both downed airliners. "I don't have a word to describe the emotional impact of that, when you know it's someone you have a high likelihood of knowing, and knowing what was going on in the cockpit," he said. A witness said he heard two loud bangs before watching the plane take a downward turn of nearly 90 degrees. A large crater, from which none of the plane could be seen, was left in the ground. FBI Agent Wells Morrison said that Westmoreland County 911 received a call at 9:58 a.m. from a man who said he was on the plane. The FBI had the tape but would not discuss its contents. The caller said that he was locked in the plane's bathroom and that the flight had been hijacked, according to Glenn Cramer of Westmoreland County 911. A loud noise was then heard and the caller reported seeing white smoke, Cramer said. Connection with the man's cellular telephone was then lost. The crash was reported soon after. Officials from the FBI and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms had sealed off the scene. It was not known whether the incident was related to terrorist plane crashes Tuesday at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Call United at 800-932-8555 or visit www.united.com for information about the flight.

Denver-Bound Flight Diverted To Canada

Reports indicated that a United Airlines flight from Bangkok to Denver Tuesday was diverted to Canada. The Boeing 777, with 142 passengers and 15 crew members onboard, was diverted to Yellowknife, Canada. All those onboard were reported to be safe. Yellowknife is the capital of Canada's Northwest Territories.

Rocky Mountain Residents Can't Get Back To Denver

Fourteen members of the Rocky Mountain Farmers Union were among those stranded in Washington D.C. Tuesday night because of the transportation shutdown following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center towers in New York and the Pentagon in Washington. Members of the group were scheduled to testify in front of Congress. David Foy, of Otis, Colo., said that he was in the Capitol when it was evacuated. He was shoved into a room with military police for about 35 minutes while officials evacuated the First Lady and the Vice President, Foy said. Later, Foy said that he found himself among hundreds of people looking for taxis that weren't running. He said that hundreds of vehicles were in gridlock at the time. Foy said that he was scheduled to fly home Wednesday, but he wasn't sure if the flight would be available. "Somebody declared war on us. That was my first thought," said Tami Roberts, 43, of Grand Junction, Colo., who was at Philadelphia International Airport trying to get home after attending her son's wedding in New Jersey. Lee and Pamela Martinez planned to tour the World Trade Center Tuesday afternoon. The terrorist attack changed their vacation plans. "We could see the towers. We could see the smoke and dust," Mrs. Martinez said by telephone from her son's apartment 20 blocks from the Trade Center. "We could see them and then we couldn't see them. They just collapsed." The Riverton couple was in New York visiting Pamela's son, Bryan Johnson, who lives at 3rd Avenue and 12th Street in Manhattan. "You don't realize how tragic it is until you see it up close," Lee Martinez said. Back in Wyoming, another of Pamela's sons, Riverton Police Officer Brett Johnson, was feeling relief after hearing from his brother, mother and stepfather Tuesday morning. "It took an hour and about 30 phone calls so we could leave a message," he told the Riverton Ranger. "It took just as long for them to get out and call us. We were real scared for a while." Lee Martinez spent much of the morning on the roof of his stepson's apartment building, watching the disaster unfold. "We (Bryan and Lee) went downtown a few blocks," he said. "You could see the smoke. You could see the people rushing north. It was shoulder to shoulder on Broadway with people coming from the twin towers (area)." Pamela Martinez said, "Sirens are constant, and the air is full of smoke. ... We just figured the safest place for us to be is right here (in the apartment)." Bryan Johnson, on vacation from his job at a Manhattan bank, was planning to take them on a tour of the World Trade Center Tuesday afternoon. His bank had a branch in one of the towers. "Luckily, it was evacuated this morning before the second tower collapsed," Lee Martinez said. The couple is scheduled to return to Riverton Saturday but their departure might be delayed. "There's absolutely no way to get off Manhattan right now. Everything is closed down toward New Jersey," he said.

Copyright 2007 by TheDenverChannel.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.