The incident happened after the plane took off from the Rocky Mountain Airport on Monday morning with a family of 3 persons on-board. All three of them were killed in the crash.

The victims belonged to Raymond, Ohio and were identified as James Kerker, 43, his wife, Amy Kerker, 39, and their 6-year-old son, Lucas Kerker. They were on their way to a family vacation in Moab, Utah, after stopping in Denver to visit family. Kerker was the registered owner of the plane and was piloting when it crashed.

Captain Randy Long from Clear Creek County Sheriff’s office said, “Initial call came from an eyewitness who watched the aircraft fail to gain enough altitude to clear the ridge line, turn back toward the Denver area, lose power and crash into the trees.”

The aircraft, which is believed to be a Piper PA model, was badly damaged. Capt. Long said, “There’s very little if anything left of the aircraft.”

The NTSB is looking into the cause of crash.

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