Extreme turbulence likely caused fatal 2021 firefighting plane crash near Colorado blaze, NTSB says

Extreme turbulence probably caused a single-engine air tanker to fall from the sky as it fought a wildfire near Estes Park at night in 2021, killing the pilot, the National Transportation Safety Board ruled last month in a final report on the crash.

Marc “Thor” Olson died when the Air Tractor AT-802A he was flying went down as he battled the Kruger Rock fire on Nov. 16, 2021. 

The NTSB said its investigation found that the plane likely flew into severe or extreme turbulence caused by mountain wave rotor cloud activity, which resulted in loss of airplane control. Shortly before he crashed, Olson reported that conditions were turbulent and that he planned to return to the airport in Loveland. 

Rotor clouds form near mountains in windy conditions and can cause…