Accident
at 4920N / 12124W
The Vancouver (VR) area control centre (ACC) shift manager was advised through the Penticton (YF) flight service station (FSS) of an overdue privately registered Cessna 172 on a VFR flight from Pitt Meadows, BC (CYPK) to Castlegar/West Kootenay, BC (CYCG). During the initial search, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) Victoria contacted the FSS regarding an emergency locator transmitter (ELT) signal associated with the Cessna 172. The aircraft had crashed 6.5NM Southeast (SE) of Hope, BC. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) attended, with the sole occupant surviving.
UPDATE: TSB Report #A20P0088: A privately operated Cessna 172 was on a cross country VFR flight from Qualicum Beach, BC (CAT4); Sechelt, BC (CAP3); Pitt Meadows, BC (CYPK); Princeton, BC (CYDC); Oliver, BC (CAU3); with an ultimate destination of Castlegar, BC (CYCG). Shortly after departure from CAT4, the pilot elected not to fly into Sechelt, BC, due to poor visibilities and low ceilings, and continued on to Pitt Meadows, BC, where the ceilings were about 1 500 feet AGL, and from there towards Hope, BC, where the ceilings lowered to about 1 000 feet AGL. When 6.5 NM SE of Hope, BC, the aircraft collided with trees. JRCC received a signal from the aircraft’s 406 MHz ELT, and the pilot also triggered an SOS signal on the SPOT network, and RCMP were dispatched to the accident site. The pilot received minor injuries and walked from the accident site to Highway 03, where the RCMP found them. The aircraft sustained substantial damage; there was no post-impact fire.
UPDATE: Aviation Incident Report #16791: A privately registered Cessna 172 began its flight with a planned route of: Courtney Airpark, BC (CAH3) to Sechelt, BC (CAP3) to Pitt Meadows, BC (CYDC) to Princeton, BC (CYDC) to Castlegar/West Kootenay, BC (CYCG). Due to low clouds, the aircraft did not land in CAP3, and instead landed in CYPK for refuelling. The aircraft departed CYPK, following the highway to CYDC. At 2500 feet above sea level (ASL), the pilot noticed clouds ahead getting lower. They decided to turn around and land for a full stop at either Hope, BC (CYHE) or Chilliwack, BC (CYCW) until the clouds cleared or the cloud ceiling raised. While performing the turn, the aircraft began losing altitude, so the pilot raised the nose to best angle for climb at full power. The aircraft continued to lose altitude despite this and they braced for impact. The aircraft crashed into the forest.