Glo-Air Flight 73On November 28, 2004 at approximately 10:00 am Mountain Standard Time, a Canadair (now Bombardier) CL-600-2A12 (Challenger 600), tail number N873G, crashed during takeoff at Montrose Regional Airport (MJT), Montrose, Colorado. The aircraft was registered to Hop-a-Jet, Inc. and operated by Air Castle Corporation doing business as Global Aviation. (Insert here) The flight was operated under Part 135 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The captain recorded the flight according to an IFR flight plan. Of the six passengers on board, three died from fatal injuries and the other three suffered serious injuries. The aircraft was destroyed due to ground impact and a post-crash fire. The flight originated from Van Nuys Airport (VNY), Van Nuys, California. Witnesses recall that the plane landed and parked at the FBO to receive fuel. The plane sat on the ramp for about 45 minutes before taking off again. On the ramp, numerous witnesses recalled that snow was falling and "contaminating" the wings of the planes. Before the plane took off, witnesses said they did not see any of the pilots inspecting the wings for ice and snow accumulation. The METAR for the airport was: “calm wind, visibility 1 ¼ miles with light snow and fog, few clouds at 500 feet, overcast at 900 feet, temperature 1°C and dew point -2°C.” (Insert here) the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) recorded the captain asking the pilot, "How do you see the wings?" The first officer replied, “Good.” And the captain replied: "It seems clear to me." (Insert here) The captain turned on the engine bleeders which help keep icing conditions low. One disadvantage of engine bleeders is that they reduce takeoff distance. The captain then proceeds... halfway through the paper... and ultimately saves that flight. Before getting back on the plane, he could have taken a moment to walk around and see how the snow affected the wings. He would have seen that snow was accumulating on the surface and might have decided to have the plane de-iced and put a layer of anti-icing on it. They could have been more patient with the plow. I gave the plow truck more time to clear the trail and then get off. Then he would never have had to turn off the engine bleed to get a shorter takeoff distance. The pilot could have decided to postpone the departure until the weather improved. With the ceiling at 900 feet and visibility at 1 ¼ it doesn't offer much room for error. I feel like if the pilots had decided to change at least one of these things, the plane would never have crashed. It's a good learning experience for other drivers.