DENVER (AP) — Investigators say a plane that crashed in the Colorado mountains, killing three, hit at least six trees and broke into pieces.
A preliminary report released Thursday by the National Transportation Safety Board didn’t discuss the cause of the Aug. 4 crash near Rollins Pass.
Investigators say the fuselage and tail of the Beechcraft C-35 were heavily damaged by fire. The wings broke into pieces and the engine separated from the plane. One propeller blade was bent 90 degrees and one was missing.
Killed were 70-year-old John Howard and 56-year-old Catherine Heveran, both of Sunnyvale, Calif., and 25-year-old James Chatham of Spokane, Wash.
Authorities say Howard was the pilot and lived with Heveran. Chatham was a friend of Heveran’s daughter.
