Accident Overview
On 18 May 2004, at approximately 1700 eastern daylight time, a de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver (registration C-GQHT, serial number 682) departed Pickerel Arm Camps water base on a day VFR flight to Fawcett Lake, Ontario. The aircraft carried one pilot and three guests. The company operated two DHC-2 Beavers for guest and supply transport to remote fishing lodges. The second aircraft, carrying the remaining four guests, arrived at Fawcett Lake around 1930 and found the first group absent. The guests later discovered the accident aircraft overturned in the lake. The pilot and three passengers were fatally injured at impact, as confirmed by autopsy reports. The aircraft sustained substantial damage; no fire occurred.
Flight Sequence
The occurrence pilot had been with the company for one week, having flown 16.8 hours total that year, including 1.6 hours on the accident day. The flight departed with three guests and all supplies for the seven-person group. The second aircraft, piloted by the company's other pilot, arrived at Fawcett Lake approximately 1 hour 15 minutes after the occurrence flight. Not finding the first group, the second pilot conducted a local search by air but could not locate or contact the first aircraft. Due to fuel constraints, he returned to Pickerel Arm Camps and notified the Winnipeg Flight Information Centre of the overdue aircraft at 2003. A communications search failed. At 2116, the company notified Search and Rescue. A SAR Hercules arrived at 2335, conducted an ELT search but received no signals. At 0036, the SAR crew observed a flashing SOS from the lodge guests. The following morning, OPP divers recovered the bodies of all four occupants; all were wearing seat belts. The pilot's seat detached with a section of cockpit floor, and the rear bench seat legs were broken. Cargo in the aft compartment was unsecured.
Wreckage Examination
The aircraft was recovered from the lake over two days with TSB oversight. Extensive damage was found: the right wing had broken off at attachment fittings, swept rearwards and upwards. The left wing was still attached and swept forward. The propeller blade was bent rearwards 45 degrees from mid-point; no strike marks on floats. The right elevator torque tube attachment was broken. The fuselage right side showed significant dishing aft of the wing root. The fuel selector was on center tank; primer down but not locked. The throw-over control yoke was on the pilot's side. Impact angles were approximately 37° nose-down and 57° right-wing-down. Flaps were in the FULL position. All flight control breaks were overload in nature. Elevator trim was full nose-down; aileron and rudder trims mid-range. The forward fuel tank had an outward rupture; center and rear tanks intact. The engine-driven fuel pump shaft was broken; pump rotor jammed at impact. The wobble pump functioned normally. The ELT inertia switch activated, but battery corrosion and disconnection likely prevented transmission. Cockpit instrument readings: oil temp 77°C, oil pressure 70-80 psi, altimeter setting 30.08 inHg, manifold pressure 27-29 inHg, turn-and-bank 5 pointer widths right.
Pilot and Equipment
The pilot held a commercial pilot license, valid for single-pilot single- and multi-engine land and sea aircraft. He had 1688 total flight hours, 344 on the Beaver. Autopsy found no pre-existing conditions; toxicology negative for alcohol, drugs, and abnormal CO levels. The aircraft was not equipped with a stall warning system (not required by regulation). The DHC-2 Beaver flight manual states that full flap is only required for emergency landing in very restricted areas and that minimum run landings may use full flap with airspeed reduced to 65-68 mph.
The second pilot reported weather at Fawcett Lake as clear, winds south at 10 knots, light ripple on lake. Ice was present in southern portion but the lodge area was ice-free. The nearest official weather at Pickle Lake at 1800: visibility 15 sm, mainly clear, temperature 17°C, dew point -5°C, wind 290°T at 6 knots.