The BC Coroners Service has identified the two men killed in last week’s float plane crash on Vancouver Island.
Spokesperson Barb McLintock said Ladysmith resident Grant Clifford Howatt, 66, was the pilot of the Air Nootka plane that crashed moments after taking off from Hesquiat Lake last Friday.
Howatt had 25,000 hours of flying experience when he picked up five hikers to fly them to GoldRiver.
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Sixty-three-year-old Courtenay resident Charles Henry Turner also died in the crash. The other four passengers survived.
Nanaimo resident John Young suffered a shattered sternum, broken ribs, broken clavicle and third-degree burns to his legs.
A female hiker suffered serious burns to her legs and a broken upper arm. The other two survivors walked away with minor injuries.
Young said the pilot was alive when the plane hit the ground but died in the ensuing fire.
Poor weather and visibility may have contributed to the crash, however investigators are looking into whether mechanical issues played a part.
Two other aircraft took off that same day in same weather and both made it back to GoldRiver without incident.
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