A pilot killed in Thursday's plane crash near Vancouver International Airport has been identified as a 44-year-old North Vancouver man.
Luc Fortin was flying the twin-engined Beechcraft King Air 100 for the Prince George-based Northern Thunderbird company when it crashed just after 4 p.m. at the intersection of Gilbert Road and Russ Baker Way in Richmond, just short of the runway.
The plane burst into flames as passersby pulled passengers from the wreckage.
Fortin was rushed to Vancouver General Hospital but died just after 9 p.m. with family members by his side.
Regional coroner Owen Court said Fortin died of "severe fire-related injuries." An autopsy was to take place Friday.
Fortin was an experienced pilot who had been with Northern Thunderbird for four years. He leaves behind a wife and child.
Calls to Northern Thunderbird were not returned by press time. A statement on the company website said, "Our hearts go out to the passengers and crew; and their families during this difficult time."
The plane with nine people aboard had departed Vancouver Airport en route to Kelowna at 3: 40 p.m. Thursday afternoon, but turned back to Vancouver after about 15 minutes when the pilots reported an oil
indication problem.
There was no suggestion the problem was critical and the flight crew declined any emergency response, said Bill Yearwood, regional manager for the Transportation Safety Board (TSB).
"It appeared to be up until the last seconds a normal approach," he said.
But then "it suddenly banked left and descended nose down and impacted the ground," he said.
Yearwood said voice cockpit recordings will be sent to the TSB's Ottawa office for analysis.
John Lovelace, a Richmond resident, pilot and TV-host of Wings Over Canada, was among those who sped to the scene soon after the crash.
Lovelace said he was at his home overlooking the airport when "I saw a big, black huge mushroom cloud of smoke" go up, and jumped on his bicycle.
Lovelace said it's impossible to know this early what caused the crash. "Thirty seconds towards the termination of the flight, something catastrophic happened," he said. "We can only surmise what that might be."
Lovelace said whatever happened, it must have been in the last seconds of the flight. A minute and a half before that, Fortin spoke to tower operators at YVR and, "He was calm, cool and collected and had everything under control," said Lovelace.
When the accident happened, "He was about 14 seconds from making the runway," he said.
Lovelace credited Fortin with doing a heroic job under terrible circumstances.
"He was doing what he was trained to do. He was saving everyone's lives. Unfortunately it cost him his life," he said.
"Something came up right up at the end and bit him hard."
Lovelace said there would have been little Fortin could do under the circumstances. When a plane is flying low and flying slow, he said, "There's no options left."
Two crash survivors remained in critical condition in intensive care at Vancouver General Hospital Friday morning, while four others were listed in stable but serious condition. Two other patients were discharged from hospital Thursday night.
The investigation into what caused the crash is expected to take months, said Yearwood.
"Our investigation will focus on how what appeared to be a benign problem turned into such a tragic event."
