Canadian Forces snowbirds will not be flying at the upcoming festival and possibly a major summer air show in British Columbia after a plane in the fleet was damaged when takeoff went awry Tuesday.
The Department of National Defense said the team will not participate in the Peach Festival in Penticton on Wednesday after a CT-114 Tutor aircraft was damaged at the airport in Fort St. John, British Columbia
“[The] aircraft will not fly while a Royal Canadian Air Force flight safety team investigates to determine the cause of the incident,” a statement said Wednesday morning.
The department also said it was likely the Snowbirds would not participate in the Abbotsford Airshow this weekend.
“The CF Snowbirds, while disappointed that they cannot attend, wish the best to both the Penticton Peach Festival, the Abbotsford Air Show and everyone in attendance,” the statement concluded.
First responders were called to North Peace Regional Airport in Fort St. John after the Snowbird plane went down Tuesday afternoon.
The plane, which had completed a demonstration over the weekend in the remote town in the province’s northeast, apparently stalled after takeoff, a defense source told the CBC’s Murray Brewster.
The pilot was able to turn the jet around, return to the airport and land, but the plane overran the end of the runway, said the source, who is familiar with the incident but was not authorized to speak publicly.
A Canadian Forces Snowbird aircraft crashed after taking off from North Peace Regional Airport on Tuesday. (Dave Luneberg/Alaska Highway News)
On Tuesday, a spokesman for the Royal Canadian Air Force said it was too early to say what caused the incident and the investigation was ongoing. It’s unclear how long the investigation will take, but he said the results will be made public.
Wednesday’s statement did not explain how the plane was damaged.
According to Maj. Trevor Reid, the pilot was not physically injured, but paramedics took them to a hospital for evaluation.
The airport fire department extinguished a fire on the plane before city crews arrived.
“We’re definitely very grateful for the quick response of the Fort St. John Airport Fire Rescue,” Reed said.
Several Snowbirds performances have been canceled this year due to a problem with the plane’s ejection chute deployment.
On May 17, 2020, a CT-114 Tutor Snowbird crashed in Kamloops, British Columbia
The crash killed Capt. Jen Casey, the Snowbirds’ public relations officer. The pilot, Captain Richard McDougall, suffered serious injuries after crash landing on the roof of a house.
Investigators determined the crash was caused by a bird strike.
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