Plane door opening after takeoff in Colorado may have caused deadly plane crash, early report suggests
While the cause of a deadly plane crash in Colorado that killed a pilot and a passenger earlier this month is still under investigation, airport officials believe an in-flight emergency shortly after takeoff may have contributed to it. Air traffic control radio recordings suggest the plane's door popped open shortly after takeoff.
The plane, a Beechcraft 95-B55 Baron, crashed on the morning of Saturday, May 17 in Broomfield after taking off from Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport. The Boulder County Coroner's Office identified the two people on board as 80-year-old Eugene Knutson and 74-year-old James Gelaude. While it's not yet clear who was flying the plane, Gelaude has had a pilot's license since 2010, according to a Federal Aviation Administration database, and Knutson does not.
"While the cause of the accident is under investigation," a statement from the airport says, "early reports suggest the pilot experienced an in-flight emergency shortly after takeoff and attempted to return to the airport."
Smoke near Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport can be seen after a deadly plane crash on Saturday, May 17, 2025.
CBS
Flight data from the flight tracking service FlightAware shows the plane was only in the air for a minute, having taken off at 10:01 a.m. and crashing at 10:02 a.m., while the plane was turning around.
According to air traffic radio recordings, the pilot appears to tell air traffic controllers that one of the doors opened unexpectedly.
"We're going to have to go back and re-land. We've got the door popped open," the pilot says in the recording. "We can hardly hear you, sir."
Part of the audio is garbled and indecipherable.
Two aviation experts -- both experienced pilots and flight instructors -- weighed in on the possibility of the door causing the crash.
Erika Armstrong, a pilot, flight instructor, and aviation safety advisor in the Denver metro area, said doors opening mid-flight in small planes is almost guaranteed.
"So sad. Pilots, heads up: an aircraft door or access panel is going to open on you. It's not IF but WHEN. It's loud, startling, and everything not strapped down is going to head out the door, but it's not a big deal! Fly the plane. This pilot called ATC and reported that a door had come open and was turning back to the airport," she wrote in a Facebook post on the day of the crash. "Visualize it happening right now. For most aircraft, you can't get the door closed due to the differential pressure, so don't fight it."
Robert Katz, a flight instructor in Dallas, told CBS News Colorado that he teaches his students about doors opening and tries to prepare them for the eventuality of it. He said doors popping open can be loud, but don't typically affect flight.
"At that point, he's not flying the plane, paying attention to altimeter, and flight controls," he said. "This shouldn't have happened."
People living near the airport have been raising safety concerns to city, county, and airport officials. While some of those concerns have been focused on lead in the fuel being expelled by the planes flying over their homes, airport officials also acknowledged concerns surrounding plane crashes.
First responders and investigators are seen at the site of a plane crash in Broomfield, Colorado on Saturday, May 17, 2025.
CBS
Erick Dahl, director of Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport, extended his condolences to the families of Knutson and Gelaude and said he aims to be responsive to those concerns.
"We understand and share the concern this incident has raised among our neighbors, especially those who have questioned the safety of general aviation operations near populated areas," he said in a statement on Wednesday. "The airport takes every safety concern seriously, and we are committed to being transparent and responsive."
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