A 19-year-old licensed pilot made a successful emergency landing north of the Boulder Airport on Friday morning after her World War II-vintage plane lost power on takeoff.
Both Morgan Araldi, who was piloting the 1941 Taylorcraft single-engine aircraft, and her father-in-law, Alan Mainaro, escaped injury, according to the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office.
However, there was extensive damage to the 1941 plane’s landing gear, propeller and struts. Officials estimate that it will cost $14,000 to repair the plane.
The plane went down on Boulder open space about 9:35 a.m.
The aircraft, nicknamed “Grasshopper,” was used during World War II for artillery spotting, courier service and light transport. It was used in front-line warfare because of its ability to land and take off from small, unimproved landing strips. Howard Pankratz, The Denver Post
