2 Film Crew Members from L.A., Pilot Are Killed in Colorado Plane Crash
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — Two Los Angeles residents and a Utah man were killed Saturday when their airplane crashed into steep terrain in stormy weather.
Mesa County Sheriff’s Deputy Doug Rushing said the two passengers, Rob Blatner, 40, and Dale Berliner, 32, both of Los Angeles, were working for a film crew from the Los Angeles area. The pilot, Kevin James, 35, was from Salt Lake City.
The crash occurred about nine miles north of Walker Field, a sheriff’s spokeswoman said. The twin-engine plane, registered to Alpine Aviation of Salt Lake City, had taken off from Canyonlands Airport near Moab early Saturday morning en route to Grand Junction.
Rescue crews were flown to the site, in an area known as Book Cliffs, with helicopters, where they found the three bodies. Weather conditions in the area included heavy rain, low clouds and some snow, Rushing said. The cause of the crash is unknown. Investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration were scheduled to arrive this morning.
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