Colorado airport activist Carleton V. Mason was killed in an aircraft accident last Monday night. He and Parker, Colorado, resident Peter A. Cole were en route from Farmington, New Mexico, to Centennial Airport outside Denver, Colorado, when the aircraft hit near the top of a 11,300-foot mountain peak. Both pilots were experienced mountain pilots and instrument rated.
"Carl was absolutely passionate in his defense of Centennial Airport," said AOPA President Phil Boyer. "I will miss his enthusiasm and his commitment to general aviation in an important state and at a key airport."
The two pilots had flown to California to pick up a new aircraft for Mason's Denver IFR Club. The preliminary accident report shows that radio and radar contact were lost shortly before the accident. The Colorado Civil Air Patrol found the wreckage Tuesday morning in a remote, rugged part of southeastern Archuleta County, Colorado.
Mason was a well-known instrument instructor, teaching in simulators and in the air.
"Carl was as safety-oriented a flight instructor as I have ever seen," said Boyer.
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