Boulder County – Two people died when a small, home-built airplane crashed nose-first on the edge of a frozen lake east of Niwot on Saturday morning.
The bright-red Kitfox Speedster plummeted about 9:30 a.m. Saturday while performing an aerobatic maneuver, Boulder County Sheriff’s Lt. Phil West said.
The two people aboard died instantly, West said. They were identified as pilot Neil Bresler, 25, of Lafayette and passenger Daniel Lehrner, 19, of Littleton.
“It’s a tragedy, I think, regardless of the day,” West said. “But I think it’s doubly so for us, making this kind of delivery of news to the families on Christmas Eve.”
Chris Colvard, Lehrner’s brother and Bresler’s best friend, released a statement:
“Both Neil and Daniel had a unique passion for life, that anyone whoever knew them would agree. They also both focused all their time and energy on helping anyone who asked them for anything at anytime. I would just like to say it’s a great loss for all that knew them, but being the last person to see the both of them, I want everyone to know they were happy, joyous and free.”
The plane crashed at the northwest corner of Panama Reservoir No. 1, where the muddy shoreline turns to ice.
The impact flung wreckage across the frozen surface, and investigators stepped gingerly on the ice to examine and document the evidence. The area reeked of gasoline.
The land around the reservoir is mostly farmland with home developments sprinkled sporadically. Hunting groups lease the shoreline, West said, and several hunters saw the crash.
Jay Loar, an Erie resident who was goose hunting in an adjacent field, said he saw the plane circle once earlier in the morning and climb steeply into a “stall” maneuver, wherein the plane’s engine stalls on the ascent and comes back on during the swift descent.
Loar said he didn’t think the plane would pull out of the descent, but it did.
A short time later, he said, the plane came back and attempted the same maneuver. It was only about 100 yards off the ground, Loar said, when it turned skyward, soared and then began its fall.
“It looked like he was going to pull out,” Loar said. “He started to come out of it, and then the nose went straight down.”
Other hunters said it appeared the plane was trying to execute a barrel roll, West said.
After the crash, Loar and other hunters rushed to the scene. Some called for help on their cellphones.
When Loar and the others got there, he said, it was clear the two inside were dead.
“You knew from the way it went in, that there was no way they could survive,” he said. “I’ve never seen anything like it, and I don’t want to see anything like it again.
“You feel for their families. It’s a terrible way to start their Christmas.”
9News contributed to this report. Staff writer John Ingold can be reached at 720-929-0898 or jingold@denverpost.com.
