Aviation news release 2012

TSB reports low altitude and aerodynamic stall combine in fatal air accident in Buss Lakes, Saskatchewan

Gatineau, Quebec, 11 July 2012 —The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) today released its investigation report (A11C0100) into the crash of a float-equipped De Havilland Beaver DHC-2 aircraft operated by Lawrence Bay Airways Ltd. The impact was severe and the five occupants were fatally injured.

On 30 June 2011, the pilot flew from Southend, Saskatchewan to a remote fishing cabin near Buss Lakes to pick up four passengers. The aircraft departed Buss Lakes but then crashed along the shoreline of another lake about 2 nautical miles southeast of its point of departure.

“The aircraft entered an aerodynamic stall,” said Peter Hildebrand, TSB’s Manager, Regional Operations, Central. “The stall occurred at an altitude from which recovery was not possible.”

An aerodynamic stall occurs when the airflow over the wings decreases to the point where the wing starts to lose lift. Recovery from an aerodynamic stall is accomplished by increasing airflow over the wings by adding engine power and returning to level flight or pitching the aircraft downward.

The TSB is an independent agency that investigates marine, pipeline, railway and aviation transportation occurrences. Its sole aim is the advancement of transportation safety. It is not the function of the Board to assign fault or determine civil or criminal liability.

For more information, contact:
Transportation Safety Board of Canada
Media Relations
819-994-8053