2 Killed In Plane Crash Near Pagosa Springs Were There For Air Race
PAGOSA SPRINGS, Colo. (AP/CBS4) — The identities of two people who were killed after their small plane crashed in a field near Pagosa Springs have been released.
The Archuleta County Sheriff's Office says the plane went last Friday morning. Robert "Bobby" Bennett, 70, of Midothian, Texas; and Svitlana Solodovnyk, 53, of the Ukraine were killed.
FAA spokesman Allen Kenitzer says the plane was trying to land on a gravel road and crashed into a field.
The couple was in town for the 2015 Pagosa Springs Air Race.
"Mr. Bennett and Ms. Solodovnyk were flying the course the day prior to familiarize themselves with it," the sheriff's office said in a statement. "Mr. Bennett was flying a 1964 S35 Bonanza when he began experiencing mechanical problems in between course 1 and 2. A close friend of Mr. Bennett's, and race participant, was flying ahead of him in his own plane when Bennett radioed him to tell him he had lost an engine and was going down."
When the friends reached Bennett's location the place was already on the ground and on fire.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are also investigating and the results are pending.
(TM and © Copyright 2015 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2015 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
