The pilot, a former police officer and an insurance analyst were among the seven people killed in the fiery crash of a World War II-era bomber in Connecticut, according to reports Thursday — as stories of heroism emerged from the tragedy.

Mac McCauley, 75, the pilot of the B-17 Flying Fortress, had flown with the Collings Foundation, the plane’s owner, since 1999, according to the Connecticut Post.

Retired Vernon police Capt. Gary Mazzone, a 22-year member of the department, also was among the dead, his family confirmed.

Robert Riddell, an insurance company analyst from East Granby, was identified by his wife as NTSB officials returned to Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks on Thursday morning.

And 48-year-old Jim Roberts, of Ludlow, Massachusetts, also perished in the crash, his brother Joe Roberts confirmed to MassLive.com.

“Today we suffered a terrible tragedy and lost several amazing people. The pilot community is a close knit group but an organization like this is even tighter. A couple of the people lost today were friends,” Eric Whyte, a pilot who has flown with McCauley, wrote on Facebook.

The fellow aviator said he last saw the doomed plane — nicknamed “Nine-O-Nine” — several days ago in Martha’s Vineyard.

“For those that knew Mac, you’ll understand the puppy in the picture. For those that never met him, he was a former NFL player, took pride in being a curmudgeon, liked to laugh at millennials but He had a soft spot for animals. Especially dogs,” added Whyte, who flies a B-24.

“As a very experienced pilot and mechanic, I often picked his brain about the airplanes and he was happy to help. As long as you brought his tools back,” he wrote. “I regret I never took a picture of us flying together. Mac had a ‘no selfies in the cockpit’ rule.”

The Collings Foundation said it was not releasing any information yet on the casualties or even confirming which crew members were aboard.

Daniel Mazzone, the son of the 60-year-old retired police captain, said his dad “loved World War II. He loved people who served this country in any capacity.”

He added: “I think he just wanted to see what it was like to be in the back of a B-17.”

The father of three from East Windsor, who also had two stepdaughters, worked as a prosecutor’s office inspector after leaving the force, finally retiring in January.

“We’re all very sad … and we’re very sad for his family,” Chief State’s Attorney Kevin Kane said. “He was a good investigator. He was a good inspector. And he was a very good and helpful colleague.”

He was a “good, well-rounded guy” who “knew how to have a good time,” former police union president Chris Hammick told the Hartford Courant.

“He knew how to bust your chops. He knew how to laugh and how to be a good manager,” Hammick said.

Meanwhile, Riddell’s widow, Debra, posted a photo of him inside the B-17 before its final flight.

“The world lost an amazing person today,” she wrote in a Facebook tribute. “Rob was the best person I’ve ever known. He was my soul mate I will miss him beyond words can ever express. He was brilliant, loving, funny, reliable, compassionate and the best man I’ve ever known.”

His stepdaughter, Jessica Darling, told WFSB that Riddell “died doing something that was really near to him.”

“He was a WWII enthusiast and this trip was on his bucket list to do,” she said.

Joe Roberts said detectives asked him to provide his brother Jim’s dental records to identify the body.

“Things are looking really really bad right now. … If my brother did die in a fire, I hope he did not suffer,” the grieving brother wrote in a social media post.

Some of the injured passengers who survived the crash include two firefighters from Simsbury, officials said.

A Connecticut Air National Guard member aboard also survived — and was one of the heroes amid reports that, despite a broken arm and collarbone, he opened an escape hatch to get survivors off the burning vintage plane.

An airport staffer was another hero, dragging passengers out of the inferno, officials said.

“You’re going to hear about some heroic efforts from some of the individuals that were in and around that plane,” Public Safety Commissioner James Rovella said at a news conference late Wednesday.

Bridgeport Hospital officials said one survivor who arrived in serious condition was upgraded Thursday to fair condition, and that two others there were still in fair condition. All three suffered burns and broken bones.

With Post wires