A student pilot who was at the Montrose Regional Airport the morning of June 23 has shared what he saw in the minutes leading up to a fatal plane crash, offering rare insight from someone just feet away from the scene before it unfolded.

He didn’t see the impact. But he saw the aircraft taxi, the engine fire up, and a maintenance truck nearby—details that could become crucial as investigators dig into what went wrong.

“I Was Admiring the Plane”

Udev Vijay is a student pilot. Young, still learning. But like many in aviation, he’s got an eye for aircraft.

Monday morning started like any other. Vijay arrived for his flight lesson at 8:00 a.m. He and his instructor prepared the small training plane on the tarmac as usual. Then, something caught his attention.

“When we’re going down, we saw the plane and I was admiring the plane as any flight or aviation enthusiast would,” he told KJCT.

The plane in question, not identified in official releases yet, was parked nearby. Nothing out of the ordinary, not at first glance.

But then came the truck.

Maintenance Truck Behind the Aircraft Raises Questions

Before he even took off for his own training flight, Vijay noticed something that stuck in his mind: a truck.

“It looked like it was for the plane,” he said. “It looked like a truck with those storage units on the side of the bed, and it was parked directly behind the plane.”

He wasn’t sure if it belonged to airport staff, a mechanic, or someone else. But the truck’s presence was striking—parked close enough that Vijay remembered it even hours later.

There’s been no confirmation yet from Montrose Regional Airport officials about whether maintenance was underway, or if the truck had anything to do with the plane’s condition.

Routine Takeoff, Then Smoke

After Vijay and his instructor finished their flight and landed safely, they noticed something: the same aircraft they’d seen earlier was now powering up.

Its engine was on. It was preparing for departure.

“My instructor noted that it would—it looked like a pretty good takeoff,” Vijay recalled.

Then they turned away. Lesson over. Equipment packed up.

And then came the smoke.

One short sentence.
One instant of change.

FAA and NTSB Now Investigating

As is protocol with fatal crashes on American soil, both the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are investigating.

Early statements confirm a single-engine aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from Montrose Regional Airport around mid-morning on June 23. The exact time of the crash hasn’t been publicly released, but local reports place the incident between 9:00 and 9:30 a.m.

There’s no word yet on how many people were onboard, but early reports suggest fatalities were confirmed at the scene.

Officials haven’t released names or aircraft model details as they work to notify families and secure the crash site.

Local Aviators in Shock, Caution Spreads Fast

News of the crash spread quickly among Montrose’s close-knit flying community.

The Montrose Regional Airport is home to a number of aviation schools, charter services, and private pilots. Students regularly train from its runways, which sit just southeast of town, surrounded by arid flatlands and mountains in the distance.

One local pilot, who asked not to be named, said word of the crash rattled younger trainees.

“You don’t expect to finish a flight lesson and see smoke,” they said. “You just don’t. It’s a punch to the gut.”

A Quick Snapshot: Montrose Regional Airport Aviation Stats (2024)

Montrose isn’t Denver International, but it’s no sleepy airstrip either. With a mix of commercial flights, private pilots, and training aircraft, it handles significant traffic year-round.

What’s Next? Eyes on the Maintenance Clue

Vijay’s comments about the truck behind the plane have raised eyebrows.

Was the plane undergoing pre-flight checks?
Was maintenance recently completed?
Was the truck a standard vehicle that happened to park in the wrong place at the wrong time?

So far, no one knows.

FAA and NTSB investigators will look into logs, inspection records, refueling, and pre-flight reports. They’ll also analyze any radio transmissions, aircraft GPS data, and security footage.

And yes—they’ll probably want to speak with Vijay again.

A Young Pilot, Suddenly Thrust Into the Spotlight

“I didn’t see the crash,” Vijay reiterated.

And he didn’t. But what he did see—an idle plane, a truck, a clean takeoff, and then smoke—has become part of the record.

It’s not the kind of thing you want to remember from a flight lesson.
But he won’t forget it.