HELENA — Emergency responders were dispatched to a call on Wednesday, July 23, 2025, at 9:52 P.M. about a plane crash on the 3100 block of Bozeman Avenue, right near the Helena Regional Airport.
Passersby and curious people passed by Thursday morning, taking pictures of the aftermath of the mangled crash. Many voiced concerns over the well-being of the pilot and potential passengers.
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The pilot and his passenger were taken to a hospital to get bandaged up, but they were miraculously able to walk away from the crash with no serious injuries.
People who worked nearby said they've never seen anything like this before.
Marta Peters, who has worked in the area for 30 years, said, "I'm glad he's okay. That had to have been scary. I can't believe he made it all the way from there all the way to here."
Bruce Seiler, who is a pilot, had a positive take: "Any landing you can walk away from, we consider to be a good landing as a pilot."
Friends identified the pilot as Larry Brown, an accountant who's now working to become an airline mechanic.
"He was a little beat up, but it’s survivable. He lived," said Aiden Fouhy.
On Thursday afternoon, Brown showed up at the site of the crash.
His face was bruised and bloodied, and he asked not to be on camera because of how he looked.
He told MTN this was the worst day of his life, blaming a technical issue for what happened: "It's just speculation at this point. We don't really know. All I know is it lost lift and crashed into the building."
As for the property owner, she chalked it up to being part of owning land. The pilot met with her and in a heartwarming moment, they hugged.
According to the FAA, the plane is a Beech B35 registered to Peace Sign LLC of Bozeman.
The investigation into the cause of the crash by the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration continues.
