The two people who were killed in a single-engine plane crash east of Telluride on Thanksgiving Day have been identified.
The pilot was identified as Bryan Lee Kill, 48, of Huachuca City, Arizona, and the passenger on board was identified of as Mana Mohtasham, 37, of Southern California.
Lee Kill was a recent resident of Telluride and Mohtasham had family in California and Iran.
The single-engine private plane was on approach to Telluride Regional Airport at 1:30 p.m. Thursday when the airport lost contact. Several witnesses reported seeing the aircraft go down.
About 2:30 p.m., the pilot and passenger were found dead at the crash site near Telluride, according to the San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office.
The plane, a Van’s Aircraft RV-4, had taken off from Durango-La Plata County Airport at 12:30 p.m. Thursday en route to Telluride, according to Flight Aware and the Federal Aviation Administration.
Members of the San Miguel Sheriff’s Office, San Miguel Search and Rescue, Telluride Fire Department and San Miguel Coroner’s Office investigated the crash and recovered the victims.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.
According to the FAA, the downed plane was found a half mile east of Telluride, and the crash occurred under unknown circumstances. Damage to the aircraft was substantial.
On Oct. 5, another fatal plane crash east of Telluride killed a newlywed couple, Costas John Sivyllis and Lindsey Vogelaar, both of Port Orange, Florida. Their plane crashed 15 minutes after takeoff. That crash remains under investigation by the NTSB.
