Transportation Safety Board investigators say they believe the small plane that crashed on the North Vancouver waterfront Sunday ran out of fuel.
The first 911 calls came in just before 4 p.m. when witnesses reported seeing a small Cessna 172 Skyhawk struggling to keep altitude as it came over the Lions Gate Bridge.
The pilot alerted air traffic control that he had lost engine power and attempted an emergency landing in the industrial area south of First Street in the Norgate neighbourhood, but he clipped the Philip Avenue overpass.
“The aircraft struck the bridge guardrail, the chain-link fence, power lines and a tree before coming to rest,” said Alex Fournier, TSB spokesman.
North Vancouver RCMP, District of North Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services and BC Ambulance Service arrived to see the pilot and three passengers had made it out of the wreck on their own. All four were taken to hospital to be checked over but only one sustained a serious injury, a passenger with a broken arm.
“The plane was intact and off the road; however, it struck some phone lines, which probably slowed down the descent, causing it to be less dramatic,” said Cpl. Richard De Jong, North Vancouver RCMP spokesman. “It goes without saying the occupants are very fortunate there weren’t more serious injuries, or worse.”
The TSB sent two investigators to the scene following the crash. They quickly found the likely cause.
“The examination has found that aircraft showed the right wing tank was empty and the left wing tank (had) a very small amount of fuel,” Fournier said.
The pilot and his passengers had taken off earlier from Tofino and were headed for Langley. The Tofino-Long Beach airport is roughly 124 nautical miles from the Langley Regional Airport.
Under Canadian aviation regulations, the pilot must ensure there is enough fuel on board to arrive at the destination in the flight plan, plus a reserve of at least 30 minutes of normal cruise time.
Bruce Johnstone was doing some work on his motorhome at a nearby storage facility when he and his niece noticed the plane coming down fast.
“We looked up and thought, ‘Gee, that’s a funny place for a plane to be right now. It’s really kind of low,’” he said. “A couple seconds later, reality stuck and we went ‘My God, he’s going to crash.’ He literally came down 30 feet away from where we were.”
Johnstone jumped into his van, where he keeps blankets and a first-aid kit, and rushed to the site. When he got there, the crash victims had just extricated themselves from the wreckage. They were all clearly in a state of “100 per cent shock,” Johnstone said, adding that the pilot was laughing.
“I think he was laughing because he was so happy he survived,” he said.
As he was gliding in, the pilot narrowly missed several wires, poles and other obstacles that could have resulted in a much worse crash, Johnstone said.
“I’m absolutely blown away that the only injury is a broken arm and obviously a lot of fright,” he said. “(The pilot) could have easily taken out the hydro poles, which would have killed somebody. … When I look at it and think about it, it’s just astounding what happened.”
CTV Vancouver has identified the pilot as Octavio Hernandez.
Police closed McKeen Avenue for several hours to secure the scene. The TSB has closed its investigation.
