Neither of the two men who died in a single-engine plane crash at Erie Municipal Airport on Oct. 19 was from Colorado, according to the Weld County Coroner’s Office, which released their names on Monday.
Niles August Tilenius, 22, of San Mateo County, California, and William Johnston, 21, of Hillsborough County, Florida, were identified as the two who died, according to Weld County Deputy Coroner Joey Weiner in the release.
Tilenius was a professional pilot, flight instructor and musician, according to an online obituary. Born on July 8, 2003, in Stanford, California, he later attended of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, before taking a year off from school to get his pilot’s license, the obituary says.
“Niles was a dear friend to many and built bridges and relationships everywhere he went,” the obituary states. “[H]e was a wise old soul at a young age who had a heart of gold and saw (and brought out) the positive in everyone he encountered.”
Having earned his pilot’s license, Tilenius became a flight instructor at three different flight schools, most recently at Odyssey Pilot Hours based in Erie, the obituary states.
Odyssey’s Founder and Executive Director, Connor Effron, confirmed Tilenius worked with the organization, adding that Tilenius wasn’t an official employee. Effron declined to confirm the nature of Tilenius’s connection with the school.
Tilenius was set to begin work as a commercial pilot with GoJet Airlines on Nov. 18, the obituary states.
“He was overjoyed and proud to have been able to follow his dreams in a tough hiring environment,” the obituary reads. “He was truly doing what he loved.”
He is survived by his mother, Stephanie Schear Tilenius, his father, Eric William Tilenius and his brother, Liam Everett Tilenius, the obituary states.
The crash happened at about 3:32 p.m., according to the release. They were flying in a JMB Aircraft VL-3 before crashing, according to an NTSB social media post.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are still investigating the crash, the release states.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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