Pilot identified in fatal plane crash east of Walsenburg
HUERFANO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- Officials in Huerfano County have identified the pilot who was found dead in a plane crash that happened on Wednesday in a rural area of southern Colorado.
On Friday, a news release from the Huerfano County Sheriff's Office said 70-year-old Michael Vaughn Cranford of Peyton was the pilot who was found dead at the crash site.
KRDO first reported the crash early Wednesday morning after volunteer firefighters in Hoehne said they got the report about a downed aircraft. The Huerfano County Sheriff's Office said on Friday that initial reports suggested the aircraft was military, but that information was "quickly determined to not be accurate."
The sheriff's office said two other pilots in other aircraft that were flying with Cranford's aircraft reported the crash after witnessing it.
Deputies found Cranford's Vans RV-4 at the bottom of Cuchara River Canyon. It wasn't recovered until Thursday morning due to dangerous wind conditions on Wednesday. A helicopter was able to land within the steep canyon, and Cranford's body was extracted and taken to the El Paso County Medical Examiner's Office.
The cause of the crash hasn't been determined, and the sheriff's office said the accident remains under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.
