BROOMFIELD, Colo. – The National Transportation Safety Board has released its preliminary report on a single-engine plane crash that resulted in the deaths of two people in Broomfield.
The report, which was produced May 22 but released Monday, states the Piper PA-32-260 plane left Erie Municipal Airport (EIK) on Runway 15 that day and flew about 3,000 feet into the air before making a left turn, descending and crashing into a grassy era near Anthem Ranch Road and Las Brisas Drive in the Anthem Ranch neighborhood in Broomfield just before noon.
The pilot and the passenger – identified two days after the crash as Robert Devon Williams, 50, and Lee Russell King, 59 – died in the crash.
The report states two experienced pilots that lived along the airplane’s flight path reported hearing abnormal engine noises. One of the pilots said he saw the plane fly past about 50 to 100 feet above ground level before hearing several popping sounds about 5 seconds later.
The second pilot reported hearing a “loud carburetor cough” followed by a “quieter carburetor cough” a few seconds later before he heard the crash several seconds later, the report states.
A third witness told NTSB investigators he saw the plane climb up in altitude before it turned left and descended. The witness did not see the plane crash.
The preliminary investigation revealed six propeller strike marks spaced about a foot apart on paved road beyond the initial impact
Investigators said the plane bounced and subsequently impacted a large tree about 100 feet from the propeller strike marks, which resulted in the engine/cockpit area separating from the remainder of the fuselage.
The crash last month comes less than two weeks after another deadly plane crash on May 11. One person was killed in the single-engine plane crash in the area of Eldorado Boulevard and Interlocken Loop.
