GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.—The pilot of one of the planes that collided in air in Mesa County last week said he was descending and peering out the passenger window when his passenger yelled, and they saw another plane approaching head on, federal investigators said in a preliminary report.
The report by the National Transportation Safety Board said the pilot of the other plane said he was climbing eastbound between 9,500 and 10,500 feet at the time, didn’t see the first plane and thought a loud bang caused by the collision was from the plane hitting a bird.
None of the six people aboard the planes was injured in the crash Oct. 22.
The plane that was descending was a Cessna 180 operated by Meil Del Rio Grande Inc. of Monte Vista, the NTSB said. The pilot told investigators he was descending westbound from 16,500 feet to 8,500 feet. He said he was hoping to catch a glimpse of deer when he looked out the passenger window as he passed 10,500 feet when his passenger yelled, the preliminary report said.
The pilot saw a Cessna 210 approaching head-on, dove the airplane and felt an impact before the plane rolled right, the report said. He was able to land the plane, but the top two-thirds of the plane’s vertical stabilizer was missing.
The pilot of the Cessna 210 also landed safely, though it skidded on its nose for about 300 feet before coming to a halt, the NTSB said. A warning light for the plane’s nose gear had come on as the pilot extended the landing gear, and the control tower reported the plane’s nose gear was not extended, the report said. The 210 was a Mesa County Sheriff’s Department plane carrying two inmates, a deputy and a pilot to Florence.
The Cessna 180 was heading from Del Norte to Aberdeen, Idaho, with a refueling stop planned for Vernal, Utah.
No date was given for when a final report might be made complete. The NTSB said information in the preliminary report was subject to change.
