Memo Appears To Back Airport Whistleblower

An internal Denver International Airport memo obtained by CBS Colorado appears to corroborate a former airport attorney’s account of a closed-door January meeting that city officials deny.

The memo, written by airport attorney Everett Martinez and signed off by a senior airport executive as accurate, quotes City Attorney Miko Brown urging staff to scrutinize Key Lime Air’s safety record. The aim, Martinez alleges, was to justify the council’s vote against the charter airline to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Council members rejected a Key Lime lease last year over the airline’s suspected ICE deportation flights. Rejecting it for non-safety reasons, Martinez warned, could cost the city $90 million in federal grants.

In March, the Mayor’s Office and City Attorney’s Office called the allegation false. A spokesman for Mayor Mike Johnston said a judge found “no evidence of crime or fraud.”

Air Force Academy Swears in 1,130

More than 1,130 appointees took their oath at the U.S. Air Force Academy on Wednesday, formally becoming the basic cadets of the Class of 2030.

The Academy drew the class from 10,970 applicants and says it is among the most competitive it has admitted, with composite academic scores 7% above past averages. Applications rose 11%, and more than 80% of those offered a spot accepted.

The Class of 2030 includes 17 international appointees from countries spanning Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America, among them Ghana, Taiwan, Egypt, and Morocco.

A 47-month path to an officer’s commission begins with roughly six weeks of basic training, ending Aug. 5 when the class is welcomed into the Cadet Wing at the Acceptance Day Parade.

Study Finds Moose Native to Colorado

A new University of Colorado Boulder study concludes that moose roamed Colorado’s southern Rockies for centuries before the state began reintroducing them in 1978.

Drawing on newspaper archives, museum specimens, and Indigenous oral traditions, the team traced moose sightings in Colorado to at least 1860, including cows with calves. Those family groups point to local breeding, the researchers say, not just the occasional wandering bull.

“Our findings show unequivocally that moose are not invasive,” said lead author William Taylor, a CU Boulder anthropology professor and museum curator.

The finding could reshape wildlife management in Rocky Mountain National Park, where heavy browsing has been blamed for shrinking willows and beaver habitat and officials have weighed fencing and culling. Labeling moose non-native, the authors argue, makes such aggressive steps look more justified than the historical record supports.

➤ Statewide: The Environmental Protection Agency awarded more than $9.1 million in Brownfields grants to clean up and redevelop contaminated sites across Colorado, including $3.3 million for Montrose’s former Bullock Plant and $1.8 million for arsenic and lead removal at Alamosa’s Railroad Plaza. (More)

➤ Fort Collins: Christman Airfield, one of Colorado’s oldest operating airfields, reopens today with a free public fly-in after a runway and lighting overhaul. The 7 a.m. CSU Drone Center event features aircraft and drones on display and a pancake breakfast for the first 200. (More)

➤ Western Slope: Comfort Keepers marked the National Day of Joy on Wednesday with free ice cream and doughnuts in Grand Junction and Montrose, drawing isolated seniors out to swap stories. The in-home care provider says loneliness is among the biggest risks older adults face. (More)

➤ Boulder: Longtime KBCO morning host Bret Saunders is out after 28 years, swept up in iHeartMedia layoffs hitting Denver-area radio. Saunders, a fixture of the Boulder station’s morning show, told Westword the cut caught him by surprise. (More)

➤ Colorado Springs: The family of Alex Martinez-Sarmiento filed a federal civil-rights suit over the 26-year-old’s fatal police shooting last July. While the suit alleges a pattern of excessive force, police say Martinez-Sarmiento fled and reached for his waistband, where a loaded gun was found, and prosecutors deemed it justified. (More)

➤ Statewide: Attorney General Phil Weiser reached a settlement with fintech firm Unlock, which will pay $390,783 in restitution to 167 Colorado homeowners and follow state lending laws. His office found Unlock’s “home equity agreements,” cash up front for a share of a home’s future value, violated Colorado’s consumer-credit rules. (More)

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➤ Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon was nominated for best NHL player at the 2026 ESPYS alongside Macklin Celebrini, Nikita Kucherov, and Connor McDavid. (More) 

➤ The NHL Draft continues today with Rounds 2-7 from Buffalo, where the Avalanche hold ten picks after stockpiling draft capital in a busy trade deadline. (More) 

➤ A recent poll found that 83% of Broncos fans want the team to sign free agent Von Miller to a one-year deal. The 37-year-old Super Bowl 50 MVP had nine sacks for the Commanders last season and has publicly lobbied for a return to Denver. (More)

➤ Yesterday’s Results: World Cup | MLB | WNBA | Golf

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Big Money Gets In Pre-IPO in AI

AI stocks now make up about 45% of the S&P 500. But the biggest breakout gains often happen because investors got in before companies went public.

In AI, big money increasingly moves sooner. In 2025, 67% of private-stage investments were in AI companies, up from 9% in 2022. But those opportunities are almost always reserved for the 1%.

Restaurant robotics pioneer Miso Robotics isn’t, and 44K+ everyday folks like you have already joined big money players like Ecolab as investors.

Miso’s Flippy Fry Station AI restaurant kitchen robot has logged 200K+ hours in kitchens across the $1T fast-food industry. Its tech is used by big-name customers like White Castle, Jersey Mike’s, Cinnabon, and more. And Miso just acquired 300+ patents from a food robotics early-mover that raised $450 million.

Flippy alone represents a $4B/year revenue opportunity in the US. Invest before Miso hits its $2.5M raise target for June. Hurry for bonus shares.

➤ Cripple Creek: The 95th annual Donkey Derby Days runs through Sunday, with a parade today, as well as vendors and live music. The free festival honors the donkeys that hauled ore during the Gold Rush and still roam town in a 16-member herd. (See Schedule)

➤ Colorado Springs: Natalie Enriquez won the 2026 St. Jude Dream Home, a roughly $625,000 four-bedroom house in Banning Lewis Ranch, announced live on KKTV. The annual $100-a-ticket giveaway has helped raise more than $10 million locally for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. (More)

➤ Palisade: The 15th annual Colorado Lavender Festival returns to the Grand Valley this weekend, with a Saturday vendor-and-seminar fair at Riverbend Park and self-guided tours of Palisade-area lavender farms on Sunday. Park admission runs $7 online or $10 at the gate. (See Details)

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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes, straight from the heart of the country. Clicking the link will take you directly to these stories:

➤ A new study found one specific diet could lower dementia risk by up to 30%, even for those with early Alzheimer’s markers. Learn which foods are the most helpful. (Hear More)

➤ A new note sent to TMZ claims to have video of a suspect with Savannah Guthrie’s missing mother, Nancy, on what the sender called “probably her last” day alive. (Tune in here)

➤  The prosecutor in the Charlie Kirk murder case was found in contempt for violating a judge’s gag order. (Podcast Available)

Have you ever seen a moose in the Colorado wild?

1. Yes, up close
2. Only from a distance
3. Never
4. Not yet, but I hope to

Yesterday’s Results:

Do you normally visit pumpkin patches in the fall?

1. No, not usually: 40%
2. No, but I used to: 24%
3. Yes, sometimes: 22%
4. Yes, always: 14%

In 1906, Colorado became home to the nation’s first national park created to protect the works of people rather than natural scenery. Which park is it?

Show me the answer