A hang glider veteran died following a crash at an air show at a United States Air Force base in southwestern Idaho on Saturday. The accident took place during the Gunfighter Skies Air & Space Celebration at the Mountain Home Air Force Base. The pilot, 62-year-old Dan Buchanan, was flown by air ambulance to a nearby local hospital but died of injuries later on, Mountain Home Air Force Base said, according to Idaho News. Though Saturday’s events were cancelled following the incident, the 366th Fighter Wing said the second day of the show will be as per schedule Sunday with first event starting at 10.30 a.m. (EDT). “The air show will continue tomorrow in honor of our dear friend Dan Buchanan, and all the support he has provided for our air shows. There will be a tribute to Dan and an opportunity to memorialize him at the show,” official account of the Mountain Home Air Force Base tweeted. Sunday’s show will be dedicated to the pilot who is a resident of Nevada. He was survived by a son and a brother. Photo: REUTERS/Johnny Milano Buchanan has been performing at the event for the past 36 years, Col. Joseph Kunkel said, calling him a hero and a friend. "Mountain Home Air Force Base is continuing to respond to this and they way we're doing that is we're providing support to Dan his family his friends and frankly the community that was here at the airshow today,” Kunkel added, stating he was proud of the first responders' efforts. Tom Maxwell, a witness, said he saw the pilot making steep drops trying to get to the ground and then he went down. “We didn't realize what was happening and then he went down, we continue to pray for him and his family," he said. A team has been sent to investigate the crash by The National Transportation Safety Board. It was too early to say what caused the accident, Kunkel said, adding he couldn’t imagine something like this happening at the event. “Hang glider impacted hard on west side of the air base, EMS and ARFF still working on extrication and patient care, medevac from Boise has been started,” Boise photographer Bernie Deyo tweeted immediately after the incident. The tow line was not clipped but intentionally released as part of the act, another witness told Idaho Statesman. “He did a whole bunch of acrobatics that were intentional and then as he was coming in to land, it looked like he caught a crosswind and it flipped him upside-down and shot the nose into the ground," the witness said. According to his website, Dan Buchanan — a licensed private and commercial pilot — had suffered spinal injury while landing a hang glider in bad weather in 1981 but returned to flying within the next six months and has taken part in more than 25 air shows.<doc-sep>A hang glider who crashed onto the runway at Mountain Home Air Force Base during Saturday's Gunfighter Skies air show has died from his injuries. Witnesses say the crash happened around 1:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon. Announcers of the event assured the crowd the hang glider pilot, Dan Buchanan, was receiving proper medical attention as he was taken to a Boise hospital via life flight. We've now learned he succumbed to his injuries. Witnesses say the crash happened moments after the pilot finished stunts with another plane, but as soon as he released a cable, the crowd watched him nose dive into the runway. The air show was halted as EMS and first responders rushed to the runway. The remainder of Saturday's airshow has been canceled. Our aerial demonstration for today at Gunfighter Skies 2018 was canceled due to a tragic glider mishap at Mountain Home Air Force Base. The collective hearts of the entire U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds are with Dan Buchanan, his family, his friends and his demonstration team. pic.twitter.com/E6dsPUVWau — Thunderbirds (@AFThunderbirds) June 2, 2018 A bio on Buchanan on the Silver Wings of Idaho's website, explains this was not his first hang gliding accident. "He was getting his Private Pilot License when in 1981, he had a spinal injury landing a hang glider in bad weather that he shouldn't have even been flying in," the website states. "Losing his ability to walk, he returned to college to pursue a career in mechanical engineering, landing him in Silicon Valley, CA." Buchanan traveled to perform in air shows around the world. The air show is scheduled to run as planned Sunday in honor of Buchanan. There will be a tribute to Buchanan and an opportunity to memorialize him at the show.<doc-sep>MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho (AP) — A hang glider pilot participating in an airshow at a U.S. Air Force base in southwestern Idaho has died following a crash. Officials called off the rest of Saturday’s Gunfighter Skies Air & Space Celebration at Mountain Home Air Force Base about 55 miles southeast of Boise after the crash. Air Force officials say the pilot of the powerless aircraft was flown by helicopter to a local hospital where he died. The pilot’s name hasn’t been released. The air show is also scheduled for Sunday, but officials haven’t said if those events will be held. Love 2 Funny 1 Wow 2 Sad 13 Angry 3<doc-sep>
A hang glider pilot died Saturday following an accident at the Gunfighter Skies air show at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho. CBS affiliate KBOI-TV reports that Dan Buchanan was transported by air ambulance but later died of his injuries. Col. Joseph Kunkel called Buchanan a friend and a hero and said he performed in the event for the last 36 years. Kunkel said it was too early to determine what caused the accident but said the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is investigating. One witness noticed the hang glider pilot making steep drops trying to get to the ground. "We didn't realize what was happening and then he went down," Tom Maxwell told KBOI-TV. "We continue to pray for him and his family." Our aerial demonstration for today at Gunfighter Skies 2018 was canceled due to a tragic glider mishap at Mountain Home Air Force Base. The collective hearts of the entire U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds are with Dan Buchanan, his family, his friends and his demonstration team. pic.twitter.com/E6dsPUVWau — Thunderbirds (@AFThunderbirds) June 2, 2018 According to the Air Force base's website, the "Gunfighter Skies Air & Space Celebration" was taking place Saturday and Sunday. It was celebrating its 75th anniversary. The remainder of Saturday's events were canceled, but the event continued Sunday and focused on paying tribute to Buchanan's memory. "I'm extremely proud of the valiant effort that our first responders had," Kunkel said. "Mountain Home Air Force Base is continuing to respond to this and they way we're doing that is we're providing support to Dan his family his friends and frankly the community that was here at the airshow today." The Mountain Home Air Force Base is located about 50 miles southeast of Boise.