Aircraft declared at least 32 emergencies last year in B.C.
Causes included engine problems, bird strikes, smoking coffee pot
A twin-engined Central Mountain Air plane from Vancouver was touching down at Comox airport last Nov. 28 when a seagull suddenly flew past the pilot’s window. There was a “thunk” on the left side of the Beechcraft 1900D during “full reverse thrust” for landing. The left engine started to vibrate and was shut down, and the plane landed safely with emergency crews on standby. A maintenance check revealed that the bird had shredded one of the four propeller blades.
A review of Transport Canada incident reports reveals that at least 32 emergencies were declared for aircraft in B.C. in 2014, for problems such as bird strikes, engine failure, hydraulic fluid leaks, cracked windshields, stuck landing gear, faulty detectors, and smoke in the cabin.
Not all emergencies were what they first seemed to be.
An Air Canada Boeing 767333 en route from Vancouver to Honolulu declared an emergency on Aug. 21 “due to electrical problem, burning smell in galley and mid-aircraft area.” The plane returned to Vancouver International Airport where the north runway was closed for nine minutes for what turned out to be a minor event. “The company determined that the source of the smoke and smell was a coffee pot,” the report concluded.
Bill Yearwood, regional manager of the federal Transportation Safety Board, said pilots are “getting better” at declaring emergencies “before it’s too late to get help.”
Air traffic controllers also often “fill the gap and call out fire and rescue” when an aircraft is turning back due to a problem “even if the pilot has not declared an emergency or asked for them,” he added.
In 2011, the pilot and co-pilot of a Northern Thunderbird Beechcraft King Air 100 died from fire-related injuries after a crash just short of the runway at Vancouver airport. The crew turned back due to an oil leak, but did not declare an emergency — something that “would have prepared fire and rescue personnel and allowed for a more timely response to the accident,” Yearwood said. Transport Canada continues to reject safety board recommendations to act to reduce post-crash fires.
Vancouver airport spokeswoman Jenny Duncan said emergency crews are on duty 24 hours a day and have a goal of reaching the mid-point of the runways within three minutes of receiving notification of an emergency — and can be positioned well in advance with notice from a pilot. Richmond Fire-Rescue, the B.C. Ambulance Service and RCMP can also offer assistance. Duncan could not immediately say how many firefighters are employed at the airport or their annual budget.
Other incidents in which aircraft declared emergencies in B.C. in 2014:
bardier• Feb. 21: CL-600-2B19A Jazz Aviationon descent Bominto Alta., YVR reported from an Fort unusual McMurray, vibration, and shut down an engine. The north runway was closed to allow it priority landing.
• March 31: A Jazz Aviation de Havilland DHC-8 bound for Prince George reported oil-pressure fluctuation, shut down an engine and returned to YVR. The problem was blamed on an incorrectly installed “oil filler cap/dipstick” after servicing.
• April 3: An Air Canada Boeing 777 bound for Sydney, Australia, dumped fuel to lighten its load and returned to YVR due to a hydraulic fuel leak.
• June 10: A Department of National Defence McDonnell Douglas F-18 fighter jet flying west of Comox “declared an emergency due to left engine shut-off caused by hydraulic malfunction.”
• Oct. 1: A Hawkair de Havilland Dash-8 leaving Vancouver for Terrace declared an emergency due to an electric smell in the flight deck but no smoke. No problem was found.
• Nov. 1: An Air Canada Jazz DHC-8 was climbing through 2,400 metres after departing Vancouver when the crew “heard a whoosh and noticed smoke and sparks coming from the terminal block for the right windshield heat(er).” The crew shut off the heater, and returned to Vancouver. A maintenance check discovered the upper left portion of the right windshield had been damaged.
• Nov. 13: Shortly after a Pacific Coastal Airlines Beechcraft 200 departed Cranbrook, the crew reported the “cabin was filling with smoke.” They turned the “bleed air” off and the smoke dissipated, allowing for a safe landing.
• Dec. 3: A Department of National Defence Sikorsky S-61L on a local flight from Victoria declared an emergency when returning from an exercise in Esquimalt Harbour. The helicopter “inadvertently touched down in the ocean during the exercise and that caused concern for the flight crew” due to potential damage to the aircraft from the water.
The Sun obtained the 32 incidents by searching for declared emergencies in Transport Canada’s database of reportable aircraft incidents.