No recorders on aircraft that crashed near Calgary

EDMONTON — An accident investigator says it will be challenging to determine exactly what caused a plane crash that killed two flight instructors from Calgary’s Mount Royal University.

FredBurowoftheTransportation Safety Board says the plane’s major components were destroyed in the crash and the resulting fire. The aircraft also wasn’t carrying — nor was it required to carry — a cockpit voice recorder or a flight data recorder.

“The absence of these recorders does make the investigation more challenging,” Burow said Monday at a briefing in Edmonton. “The socalled black boxes that are required in larger aircraft do make things easier for the investigation and do bring a lot more data to it.”

Pilot Jeffrey Bird and co-pilot Reynold Johnson died Feb. 13 when their twin-engine Tecnam

PORT MOUTON, N.S. — Lobster thieves are back at work in Nova Scotia — two fishing boats were hit a week apart.

RCMP Const. Rob James says the first cache of crustaceans was taken from a boat tied up alongside the wharf in Port Mouton on Feb. 12.

Another 135 kilograms was taken in a similar fashion at the same aircraft went down northwest of Calgary. Burow said it’s too early to say whether the crash was caused by mechanical failure or a medical issue with one of the pilots. Investigators are still sifting through the wreckage and Burow says the aircraft’s maintenance history has been requested.

“I’d like to stress if, during the investigation, there are any safety concerns that have to be dealt with immediately, we co-ordinate that with the regulator — Transport Canada — the manufacturer and we get that information out right away,” he said. “At this time, we don’t have anything like that.”

Mount Royal University said in a statement it is continuing to cooperate with the Transportation Safety Board, as well as provide support to all students and instructors affected.

N.S. police on hunt for lobster thieves

wharf on Feb. 18, bringing the total amount of stolen lobster up to 270 kilograms, worth about $6,000.

James says it’s not clear if there’s a connection between the two thefts, and it’s not unusual to see people try to make off with the pricey delicacies.

In an incident last January, police say 48 crates of live lobster were stolen from an outdoor pound at a business on Cape Sable Island.