Accident occurred Saturday, August 20, 2011 in Resolute, Canada
Aircraft: BOEING 737, registration:
Injuries: Unavailable
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. The foreign authority was the source of this information.
On August 20, 2011, about 1230 central daylight time (local), a Boeing 737-200, Canadian registration CGNWN, operated by First Air in a combination passenger/freight configuration as flight 6560 and equipped with Pratt & Whitney JT8D engines, impacted terrain approximately 1 mile east of the airport while on approach for landing at Resolute Bay Airport, Resolute, Nunavut, Canada. Of the four crew and eleven passengers, twelve occupants were fatally injured.
The Transportation Safety Board (TSB) of Canada is investigating the accident. As the state of manufacture of the airplane and engines, the NTSB has designated a U.S. Accredited Representative to assist the TSB in their investigation.
All inquiries concerning this accident should be directed to the TSB of Canada at:
Transportation Safety Board of Canada
200 Promenade du Portage
Place du Centre, 4th Floor
Hull, Quebec K1A 1K8
Canada
Website: http://www.tsb.gc.ca
A Leduc resident has been identified as one of the victims of a weekend plane crash near Resolute Bay, Nunavut, that killed 12 people.
Captain Blair Rutherford, 48, the pilot of the plane, was born in Winnipeg and was based in Yellowknife but resided in Leduc.
According to Kanata, ON-based First Air, the company that ran the northern flights, Rutherford served 15 years with them.
Three other crew members died in the crash, all from the Northwest Territories.
The charter flight sent a last communication at 12:40 p.m. on Aug. 20, about five miles from their Resolute Bay destination. Roughly 10 minutes later, The Boeing 737-200 went down.
Canadian Forces personnel were on the scene shortly afterward. Three survivors were found and medevaced to Iqaluit. Two of them were then taken to Ottawa for further treatment.
"We are deeply saddened by this tragedy and offer our sincere condolences to the families," said Chris Ferris, First Air vice president, at a press conference the following day.
"The cause of the accident is still unknown and First Air is fully cooperating with the Transportation Safety Board as they conduct their investigation," said First Air president and CEO, Scott Bateman.
The company has sent field teams to offer counseling and support to families and colleagues of staff.
Rutherford left behind his wife Tatiana, a First Air flight attendant since 1997, and two young children.
His family chose to offer no comment following the crash.
A memorial for Rutherford has been planned for Monday, Aug. 29 at the North Caribou Air Hanger, 3679 56 Ave. E, Edmonton International Airport.
Memorial donations are being accepted in trust for his kids at the Leduc branch of the Royal Bank.
Source: http://www.leducrep.com
