The small plane that slammed into a busy Richmond, B.C. roadway Thursday, killing its pilot and injuring everyone else onboard, appeared to be experiencing just a routine engine issue before the crash, according to its operator.
The Kelowna-bound Beechcraft King Air 100 airplane had only been in the air about 15 minutes when an oil pressure indicator light came on at around 4 p.m. Thursday.
The pilot, 44-year-old Luc Fortin of North Vancouver, requested a return to Vancouver, and was asked if he required emergency services. He declined.
The Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the crash, says the plane appeared poised to land safely at YVR when it suddenly plummeted onto Russ Baker Way in Richmond.
"With the landing gear down, everything looked normal," said TSB spokesman Bill Yearwood. "But just short of the airport perimeter, the aircraft banked sharply to the left, turned 90 degrees and crashed."
Bill Hesse, Fortin's employer at Northern Thunderbird Air, said the deceased was an experienced pilot who had flown 14,000 hours and reacted appropriately to the situation.
"Every indication is just that it was a routine return," Hesse said. "With the issues that he had, he didn't do anything untoward. He just operated the flight routinely."
It does not appear that Fortin intended to land on the road, Hesse added.
"That wasn't the goal. They ended up there because something obviously happened in the very final stages of the flight, and we just don't know what that is."
The BC Coroners Service says Fortin was rushed to hospital, but was pronounced dead at 9:10 p.m. from severe fire-related injuries. He leaves behind a wife and young daughter.
The co-pilot, Matt Robic, remains in critical but stable condition. The 26-year-old is an entry-level pilot with 1,500 hours experience. Sources say he may have sustained burns to up to 80 per cent of his body.
The seven remaining occupants, all passengers, were taken to hospital with various injuries. Vancouver Coastal Health confirmed Friday that one remains in intensive care, four in serious condition and two others have been treated and released.
The aircraft collided with a car before bursting into flames. A number of motorists who witnessed the crash pulled fire extinguishers from their vehicles, attempted to put out areas of the fire and began helping people from the wreckage before first responders arrived just minutes after the crash.
Their efforts were applauded by the City of Richmond and B.C.'s Solicitor General.
"It made a big difference and it's a miracle that this wasn't a much worse tragedy," Richmond city spokesman Ted Townsend said.
The TSB sent five investigators to the crash site overnight, and the wreckage was removed at around 4 a.m. Friday.
Yearwood said the aircraft has been secured at YVR, where the engines will be more thoroughly examined.
"While damaged from impact, [they] appear to be in reasonable enough condition that we should be able to get good information from them as to how they were operating just before contact with the ground," Yearwood said.
Northern Thunderbird Air says the aircraft is 40 years old, and has been refurbished four or five times. Hesse said the plane is constantly maintained and an engineer looked over it on Thursday before the flight.
