Flight data recovered from Sask. crash site
FOND-DU-LAC, SASK. •Investigators say a passenger plane that crashed in northern Saskatchewan left a path of wreckage almost a quarter of a kilometre long through trees and across the ground.
All 25 people on board survived, some with serious injuries, when the twin-engine ATR42-320 went down close to the Fond-du-Lac air strip after taking off on Wednesday night.
Previous reports have said there was no explosion or fire.
The Transportation Safety Board says its team of investigators arrived on the scene Thursday afternoon and has recovered the plane’s flight data and cockpit voice recorders as well as its emergency locator transmitter.
West Wind Aviation, which owns the plane, has grounded its four remaining ATR aircraft. West Wind spokesman Rick Philipenko said the move was voluntary and will be in effect until the company concludes parts of its internal investigation.
The board says it will continue to gather more data in the coming days and weeks and interview witnesses, including the pilots and passengers, to determine what happened.
The investigation could take up to a year.
“Investigations are complex and we take the time needed to complete a thorough investigation,” the board said in a release Friday.
“It is important not to draw conclusions or speculate as to causes at this time. There are often many factors that can contribute to an accident.”
The plane was scheduled to travel 80 kilometres east to Stony Rapids, then on to Wollaston and Prince Albert. On board were 22 passengers, including an infant, and three crew.
It took about four hours to rescue them. Local RCMP officers, rangers and at least 50 residents in the 900-person remote community of Fonddu-Lac immediately went to the scene to help. Many of the passengers were taken to safety by Ski-Doo. The more seriously injured went on stretcher boards that were put on sleighs.
The twin-engine ATR-42 turboprop can accommodate 50 passengers, but most typically seats 42, along with two crew. Manufactured in France and Italy, the aircraft is designed for short-haul flights.
West Wind Aviation, formed in 1983, operates from bases in Saskatoon, La Ronge and Stony Rapids, as well as in northern Saskatchewan. The company is First Nations and employee-owned, with Athabasca Basin Development as the majority shareholder.
First Nations chiefs say the crash demonstrates the need for upgraded runways and all-season roads in remote communities.
Fond-du-Lac Chief Louie Mercredi said his community has one of the shortest runways in northern Saskatchewan, even though the size of planes using the airstrip continues to grow.
Mercredi said they could also use an all-season road so people would have a choice about whether they wanted to fly or drive.
“We as leaders need to sit down with the province regarding all-season roads and upgrades to our runways,” Mercredi said.
There is an ice road in the winter, but the chief said many people still fly.