A Colorado doctor known for performing as a circus trapeze artist died with his 3-year-old daughter after his plane crashed during an erratic flight, officials said.
Aaron Gingrich, a professor of emergency medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz, had taken his daughter, Isabella, on a roughly three-hour flight in his single-engine aircraft before it went down in the Rocky Mountains late Oct. 4, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board.
The 43-year-old father, who performed with the circus troupe Apesanteur Trapèze Volant, flew over northern Colorado for nearly three hours. His altitude varied from more than 15,000 feet to about 7,375 feet above sea level just two minutes before the crash.
Gingrich, who previously operated a ketamine treatment clinic, ultimately crashed into mountainous terrain at about 7,360 feet near Eldorado Springs. His body and his daughter’s were found in the wreckage.
No air traffic controller was on duty when Gingrich departed from Vance Brand Airport in Longmont. Audio recordings obtained by KDVR captured another pilot criticizing what he called Gingrich’s “dangerous takeoff.”
“Hey Two Gulf Lima, thanks so much for cutting us off in the traffic pattern. Appreciate it,” the pilot said sarcastically.
“We also have someone up, uh, upwind 2-9 who’s being really dangerous and put us off in pattern. So we’re just getting out of here,” the pilot added.
The recording did not establish whether Gingrich had made any radio transmissions.
Investigators have not determined what caused the crash or why Gingrich’s flight path was so erratic.
First responders were alerted to the crash at 9:42 p.m. by a notification from the U.S. Air Force Rescue Coordination Center, the Denver Post reported.
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The wreckage was located shortly after 10 a.m. the following day, about four miles from Mountain View Fire Rescue Station Nine. Elevations in the area range from roughly 6,500 to 7,500 feet, according to the newspaper.
The aircraft struck rising terrain approximately 300 feet below a ridgeline, the NTSB said.
Gingrich, a Columbia University graduate, was a professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz, the university confirmed.
He earned his private pilot’s license in 2016, according to an online profile reviewed by the Daily Mail. As an emergency physician, he had worked in five states and six countries and opened a ketamine treatment clinic in Texas in 2022, the profile said.
He also performed with Apesanteur Trapèze Volant, a Switzerland-based trapeze group. The troupe’s leaders shared a heartfelt tribute to their fellow performer.
“Your positive energy, your kindness, your beautiful way of sharing smiles, laughters and music will be remembered. Thank you, you will be deeply missed. We hope you’re flying and doing flips wherever you are now,” the group wrote in a social media post.
The post featured photographs of Gingrich smiling as he performed aerial maneuvers.
Friends and relatives created a GoFundMe campaign to help Isabella’s grieving mother, Lauren Willcox.
A separate reference to the fundraiser said it had been established to support Willcox following Isabella’s death.
“There are no words for the loss of sweet Bella, who was only three years old,” the fundraising page said.
“Our hearts are broken for Lauren as she faces the unimaginable pain of losing her little girl.”