In an unfortunate incident, six people died after a small plane crashed in Kananaskis Country, a mountainous region west of Calgary in Canada. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) stated that the plane, bound for Salmon Arm, British Columbia had left for Springbank Airport near Calgary on Friday night with five passengers and a pilot.
RCMP Staff Sgt. Ryan Singleton informed that Air Traffic Control (ATC) lost contact with the plane around 9:30 pm local time (0330 GMT Saturday). After the plane was reported missing, a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) squadron based in Winnipeg was pressed into service.
With the help of Alberta Parks Mountain Rescue, the squadron managed to find the crash site and started looking for survivors, However, all six aboard died due to the strong impact of the crash.
“On behalf of the Alberta RCMP, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the families of those onboard the aircraft,” said Singleton, adding that the identities of victims were not being released at the time.
“Recovering the bodies of the pilot and the passengers was very challenging due to the difficult terrain. However, all six bodies have been successfully recovered,” he added.
Mike Koppang, a mountain rescue specialist with Kananaskis Country, who was on the scene along with various other crews said weather conditions during the time of flight were could, with low-lying clouds reported on the region.
“Unfortunately, it wasn’t the outcome we would have liked to see. We’re still trying to figure out exactly what we saw for weather last night,” said Koppang.
According to a Transportation Safety Board spokesman, the plane was a single-engine Piper PA-32, and that the board was investigating the crash.
