The pilot of the small aircraft that crashed near Larkspur in mid-July died five days after the crash, according to a preliminary federal report on the incident.
At around 8 a.m. the morning of July 13, a woman who was walking her dog heard the gyrocopter overhead and said it sounded like it was "struggling," according to the National Transportation Safety Board report.
"Then, the engine stopped and the gyrocopter fell through the trees," the report states.
The woman reported that the pilot was conscious but unable to talk, per the document. He was taken to the hospital, where he died five days later.
The pilot had reportedly been flying from Buena Vista to Peyton when the crash occurred. He had left the airport in Buena Vista around 7 a.m. and called a friend while over Lake George in Park County. He told the friend that "everything was fine" and he would call again when he landed, per the report.
Another friend had flown to Buena Vista with him in a separate aircraft several days prior and said the later-downed aircraft was performing normally at the time, according to the report.
The aircraft would have been due for an annual inspection in September, the report said.
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