One dead in plane crash; aircraft registered to local residents

BLACK HAWK — Authorities say one man is dead after a single-engine plane crashed in the mountains about 40 miles west of Denver.

Gilpin County Sheriff’s office spokeswoman Cherokee Blake says two men were on the plane on their way to a graduation in Boulder when the crash happened near Black Hawk on Thursday. She says a 55-year-old was the pilot of the plane and a 23-year-old was the passenger. She says they departed from Glenwood Springs.

The plane is owned by Winkmaggair LLC, and is registered to Carbondale resident Barry Maggert, and Carroll Winkler of Glenwood Springs.

Maggert made an unsuccessful run for a Carbondale Town Trustee seat in April. His younger brother is Jeff Maggert, a PGA tour golfer.

The identities of the pilot and passenger are not known.

Blake says a Blackhawk helicopter was used to lower rescuers to the site of the crash because of the rough terrain and that the survivor was flown to a Denver hospital.

She would not say whether the pilot or the passenger died.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Mike Fergus in Seattle says one of the people on board called 911 from a cell phone after the crash.

The FAA has been called to investigate.