4 CONFIRMED DEAD IN PLANE CRASH

All four people onboard a plane that crashed in the Boulder County foothills have been confirmed dead.

A preliminary report by the FAA lists one crew member and three passengers as fatalities in the plane crash Sunday morning, and the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Monday afternoon that four bodies have been recovered.

The names of the people killed in the crash have not yet been released.

Officials said Sunday there were four people on the flight and that they did not find any survivors, but due to the fire and heat, crews were able to confirm only one fatality on Sunday.

According to the report, the plane was a dual-engine Cessna T337G with the tail number N337KN, manufactured in 1972. According to records, that plane is registered to a VX Aviation LLC out of Broomfield, and the certificate for the plane expired in April.

Reporting by the Colorado Sun identified the plane as at one point belonging to Bluebird Aviation. The company’s site and social media accounts have since been taken down.

At this time, the FAA report lists the route as not known and the crash is listed as occurring under “unknown circumstances.”

Peter Knudson, a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, did say it appears the plane entered a descending left turn in the moments before it crashed.

An unofficial flight tracking site also shows the plane took off from Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Broomfield for the Boulder County area before dropping off the radar about 10 minutes in.

The site also shows the plane made six flights this month, all originating in Broomfield and starting on the same initial path as Sunday’s flight.

The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office said the initial call about a plane crash in a heavily timbered area in the 11000 block of Lefthand Canyon Drive came in at 9:41 a.m.

The crash sparked a wildfire that prompted an evacuation warning for residents near the 10000 block of Lefthand Canyon Drive and the towns of Gold Hill and Ward. Crews were able to limit the spread of the fire to about an acre.

MATTHEW JONAS/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Boulder County Sheriff’s Fire Management crews are seen near the 11000Block of Lefthand Canyon Drive in Boulder County on Monday, July 18, 2022. Four people are confirmed dead after a twin-engine plane crash Sunday morning that sparked a small wildfire in the area between Lefthand Canyon Drive and Gold Hill Road.