Story highlights Investigators found GoPro camera near crash site

Files taken from the camera showed selfies taken in air

(CNN) Distraction caused by taking selfies is likely to blame for a plane crash that killed a pilot and his passenger in Colorado in May, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.

Investigators found an undamaged GoPro video camera near the wreckage and recovered its data card. Video from the card showed the 29-year-old pilot with several passengers on flights the previous day, and one nighttime flight shortly before the fatal trip, taking photos of himself with his cell phone, according to investigators.

"The camera's flash was activated and illuminated the cockpit area," the report said

The fatal flight, on May 31, was not captured on the GoPro footage but investigators said that the pilot, who is not identified in the report, was at the controls of the plane when it stalled and crashed in a wheat field, bounced once and came to rest upright.

It's likely that the use of cell phones during that flight "distracted the pilot," the report said, causing him to develop spatial disorientation and lose control of the plane. The aircraft went into a stall and then spun before crashing, investigators said.

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