Air transportation safety investigation A23P0003
Table of contents
Controlled flight into terrain
Summit Helicopters Ltd.
Bell Helicopter 407
Terrace, British Columbia, 17.5 SM NNW
The occurrence
On 4 January 2023, a Summit Helicopters Ltd. Bell 407 helicopter was conducting a visual flight rules (VFR) flight from the Terrace airport (CYXT), British Columbia, to the Northern Escape Mountain Lodge, British Columbia, with one pilot and four passengers on board.
While in flight the aircraft encountered some fog; therefore, the pilot reduced altitude to maintain visual reference to the ground but subsequently became disoriented due to reduced visibility.
The helicopter impacted the surface of Treston Lake, then managed to climb out of the fog and continue to its intended destination without further incident. Subsequent inspection of the helicopter showed damage to the skid landing gear. There were no injuries. The TSB is investigating.
Investigation information
Map showing the location of the occurrence
Investigator-in-charge
Jeremy Warkentin joined the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) in 2017 as a Regional Senior Technical Investigator, in the Aviation Investigations Branch, at the regional office in Edmonton, Alberta.
Mr. Warkentin is a graduate of the British Columbia Institute of Technology’s Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) program and has more than 20 years of aviation experience working for several fixed wing operations as a licensed Aircraft Maintenance Engineer, Quality Assurance Manager and Base/Production Manager. He holds both an M1 and M2 license, and has experience on aircraft ranging in size from the Cessna 152 to the Airbus A321.
Class of investigation
This is a class 3 investigation. These investigations analyze a small number of safety issues, and may result in recommendations. Class 3 investigations are generally completed within 450 days. For more information, see the Policy on Occurrence Classification.
TSB investigation process
There are 3 phases to a TSB investigation
- Field phase: a team of investigators examines the occurrence site and wreckage, interviews witnesses and collects pertinent information.
- Examination and analysis phase: the TSB reviews pertinent records, tests components of the wreckage in the lab, determines the sequence of events and identifies safety deficiencies. When safety deficiencies are suspected or confirmed, the TSB advises the appropriate authority without waiting until publication of the final report.
- Report phase: a confidential draft report is approved by the Board and sent to persons and corporations who are directly concerned by the report. They then have the opportunity to dispute or correct information they believe to be incorrect. The Board considers all representations before approving the final report, which is subsequently released to the public.
For more information, see our Investigation process page.
The TSB is an independent agency that investigates air, marine, pipeline, and rail 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.