Plane crash stuns family, students
‘It was a devastating thing for us to find out, absolutely devastating …’
Families of two pilots killed in a plane crash northwest of Cochrane are grieving as they await answers about what caused the small twinengine Tecnam they were piloting to plummet to the ground.
Jeffrey Bird, a former pilot with the Royal Canadian Air Force, and Reynold Johnson, also known as Reyn, a veteran pilot who flew for Air Canada and Jazz for 35 years, have been identified as the two Mount Royal University flight instructors killed Monday.
“It was a devastating thing for us to find out, absolutely devastating,” said Bob Blakey, uncle to Bird’s widow, Carly Barnett. “He was so young. I just feel so empty... that somebody so young could go that way.”
The two instructors were in the Springbank Airport flight practice area in a twin-engine plane Monday evening when something went wrong. Authorities including Transport Canada and the Transportation Safety Board began their investigation as soon as it was daylight again Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters Tuesday, MRU president David Docherty said both of the instructors were experienced pilots. “These were individuals who, flying was their life and they wanted to teach others to fly and fulfil their dreams,” Docherty said.
Bird was previously a pilot instructor with the RCAF stationed in Moose Jaw. Before joining MRU, he was a helicopter pilot with the 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron based in Edmonton. He deployed to Afghanistan as part of the Joint Task Force Afghanistan Air Wing.
Lieutenant-Colonel Brian Dunsterville, speaking on behalf of 15 Wing Moose Jaw, described Bird as a “well-liked instructor pilot, who was known by all for his unwavering positivity and kindness.”
“While Jeff was undoubtedly a dedicated pilot and officer, he will be most remembered as a proud family man, whose true love was his family.”
The 35-year-old Bird was also a husband and father to two young children.
“He was one of the most devoted fathers that I’ve ever seen. He just loved his daughter and son,” Blakey said. “He was so conscious of his role as a father and he just loved the company of his children.”
A memorial will be held for Bird at 2 p.m. on Feb. 19 at the Bella Concert Hall at Mount Royal University.
Students and faculty at the university were mourning the loss of both pilots Tuesday. “Today as a community, Mount Royal grieves the tragic loss of two aviation instructors,” Docherty said Tuesday morning as students from the aviation program looked on.
“At a difficult time, our sincerest condolences first and foremost go to the families of those instructors. Our hearts are also with our aviation students ... the faculty, our staff, as well as the broader aviation community.”
Luc Sinal, the president of the aviation student executive, said about 40 students gathered Monday night after hearing the tragic news to talk about their favourite memories of the two victims.
Sinal said because there are about 60 students in the program and approximately 12 flight instructors, students get to know their instructors well and the teachers become “like family.”
“I’m sure if you ask everybody from the program, the instructors are what makes a difference,” Sinal said. “They’re the ones that make us who we are. We have other classes ... but it’s the instructors, the one-on-one time — they’re the ones that mould us and teach us everything we know.”
The second-year student described one of the instructors, who he knew well, as “easily the kindest man I’ve ever met.”
“He always had time for you,” Sinal said.
The aviation program acquired a new fleet in 2011 of five singleengine Cessnas and three twinengine Tecnams, Sinal said.
The university president said MRU has reached out to the families of the victims and counselling and support services are being provided to students, faculty and staff.
The loss has been very difficult for fellow teaching staff of the victims, Docherty said. According to MRU, there are about 15 faculty and staff in the program and 56 enrolled students.
Jon Lee, western regional manager for the Transportation Safety Board in Edmonton, said the agency formally launched its safety investigation into the fatal accident at about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.
“We’re gathering lots of data,” Lee said. “This flight was captured by the radar, and so we have a digital file that shows the aircraft’s track, speed, altitude ... so that’s going to be a big help to understanding what happened.”
This is the first time Mount Royal University has experienced an event that resulted in a fatality in its aviation program, and these types of incidents are extremely rare, the school said. The aviation program launched in 1970 to train commercial pilots.