More Details on Fatal Single Engine Plane Crash

By 250 News

Chetwynd, B.C.- RCMP have released more information on yesterday's fatal  light  plane  crash  near Chetwynd.

Two men were in the light single engine plane, when it crashed at approximately 2:15 pm on Friday June 12th, near Chetwynd.

The pilot, a 61 year old man from Kelowna, died as a result of the injuries he sustained in the crash. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The passenger in the aircraft was a 56 year old man from Kelowna. He was able to call for assistance, exit the plane and walk out to the nearby highway to meet police. He was then transported to the hospital, where he was treated for minor head lacerations. He was released from the hospital late Friday night.

The names of the two men are not being released at this time. The two occupants of the plane were not related to one another, however were co-owners of the aircraft.

The plane was a GiaStar, a single-engine, two-seater light aircraft. The men were travelling from the Northwest Territories to Kelowna when the crash occurred. The plane had landed in Dawson Creek for fuel, approximately forty (40) minutes prior to the crash.

The preliminary investigation has revealed the aircraft experienced sudden and severe propeller trouble before crash. The men had flown past Chetwynd and had decided to circle back to land at the airport. The situation deteriorated, and they considered an emergency landing on Highway 29 South. Due to factors yet to be determined, they were not able to land on the highway, and subsequently crashed off the highway near Curtis Road, approximately 10 km south of Chetwynd.

The aircraft flew over a house and garage, then crashed into grove of tall poplar trees. The terrain where the plane crashed was a grassy uphill slope.

Police investigators continue to interview any witnesses to the crash and examine the crash site.

Little information is known at this time as to what caused the aircraft to crash and further details will emerge as the investigation continues.

The Transportation Safety Board has been advised of this incident. The Chetwynd RCMP, the South Peace Collision Reconstructionist and the BC Coroners Service will work together to establish what the causal factors were in this crash.

Anyone with any information, or who might have witnessed the aircraft in trouble, prior

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