The Transportation Safety Board (TSB) has ruled the fatal aircraft crash in Richmond in 2011 was a ‘survivable accident’.
The two pilots died from severe burns after the aircraft caught fire following the crash. The seven passengers on board the the Northern Thunderbird Air Inc. Beechcraft King Air A100 survived.
The investigation found that the left engine’s oil reservoir cap was unsecured during routine maintenance, and it was not caught during the pre-flight inspection.
Following take-off, the crew noticed oil leaking from the left engine and the pilots diverted the flight back to Vancouver.
The TSB says while on the final approach to land at YVR, “power was likely applied only to the right engine, causing the pilot to lose control of the aircraft as it rolled left, pitched down and crashed. Investigators found that the aircraft’s speed was below the speed needed to maintain directional control with low power on the left engine and high power on the right engine. The pilot reduced the right engine’s power and regained control; however, low altitude limited the recovery, and the aircraft collided with the ground.”
The report says both engines could have been used, but the pilot chose to just use one to bring the aircraft back to YVR. That causes the aircraft to veer and start to stall.
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The aircraft was destroyed in a post-impact fire. The TSB called this a “survivable accident” and say more needs to be done to reduce the risks associated with post-impact fires. The Board is concerned that if no action is taken by Transport Canada to address the recommendations made in the TSB’s 2006 Safety Issues Investigation on Post Impact Fires Resulting from Small-Aircraft Accidents, ignition sources will remain, and the risk of post-impact fires will persist.
Following the accident, Northern Thunderbird Air provided information to its flight crews on the risk of flying with reduced power on one engine as speed decreases, and amended its standard operating procedures to reduce the risk of recurrence.
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One of the pilots, 44-year-old Luc Fortin, was killed in the crash, leaving behind a wife and a young daughter.
The other pilot, Mark Robic, also died from his injuries.
The aircraft was on a charter flight from Vancouver to Kelowna at the time of the crash.
Six of the surviving passengers filed a lawsuit against the airline in B.C. Supreme Court for damages. They said they noticed oil under the aircraft wing before takeoff, but even though they reported it to the crew, the aircraft took off as planned.
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