Community Corner

Report Reveals New Details About Fatal Loveland Plane Crash

A pilot from Golden died in a crash last month, and a preliminary report has been released that shows he tried to glide to a runway.

A plane went down a half-mile north of Northern Colorado Regional Airport in Loveland May 15.
A plane went down a half-mile north of Northern Colorado Regional Airport in Loveland May 15. (Image via Google Maps)

GOLDEN, CO — A preliminary report has revealed new information about the death of a pilot from Golden. Thomas Lawson, 69, died in a crash a half-mile north of the Northern Colorado Regional Airport in Loveleand on May 15. He was the only person on board.

The National Transportation Safety Board preliminary report reveals Lawson tried to glide to a runway after his plane caught fire. The blades of the plane's right propeller were turned to increase glide distance, the report shows.

The plane had taken off from Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Broomfield, and crashed just off Larimer County Road 30 in Loveland.

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A witness told the Reporter-Herald that the plane looked like "a fireball dropping straight down," but said that it was moving slowly, before disappearing below the horizon. Several other witnesses and the pilot of another aircraft reported that the plane's right wing was on fire.

Lawson has left behind his wife and family, according to tributes posted on social media.

Find out what's happening in Goldenfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

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