The pilot, the only person onboard, sustained minor injuries, and was transported to Montrose Memorial Hospital by a private vehicle, according to a San Miguel County Sheriff's Office report. The pilot's name was not released.
The plane was a single-engine Cessna 207, N-number 207GR, according to Federal Aviation Administration spokesperson Allen Kenitzer. The FAA website lists the fixed wing, turbo-prop plane as registered to Blue Sky Telluride, LLC.
Preliminary information about the accident indicated the pilot was performing a landing at the Telluride airport, but for some reason was forced to land off the airport landing strip in what Kenitzer called a "hard landing." There was "substantial damage to the plane," said Kenitzer.
"Anything could have happened" to cause the accident. "This information is all very preliminary," he added.
