History of the Flight
The Northern Thunderbird Air Inc. Beechcraft 1900C (registration C-GCMZ, serial number UC-61) departed Vancouver International Airport, British Columbia, on a charter flight to Blue River, British Columbia, with 2 crew members and 1 passenger on board. The flight was operated under instrument flight rules to Valemount, British Columbia, where the crew conducted an instrument approach, and then proceeded under visual flight rules to Blue River. Arriving in the Blue River valley, the captain, who was the pilot flying, commenced a straight-in approach to Runway 19.
Approach and Landing
At 1129 Pacific Daylight Time, in daylight conditions, the aircraft touched down on the snow-covered runway. Immediately after touchdown, the left main gear entered an area of deep snow. The aircraft veered into the snow bank, sustaining substantial damage. The crew and the passenger were not injured, and there was no fire. The impact forces were not enough to activate the emergency locator transmitter.
Weather and Runway Information
The flight was chartered by a travel agency on behalf of a wilderness adventure ski lodge. The travel agent verbally passed information to the flight crew while passengers were boarding in Vancouver. The captain understood that the runway had been plowed the previous day, and that the weather had been good that morning in Blue River. Before departing Vancouver, the flight crew obtained official weather data from regular flight planning sources, including the 0900 METAR for Blue River. It was noted that although current conditions at Blue River were good, a weather system was moving northbound. The ski lodge radio room operator overheard the flight crew discussing weather conditions with a local helicopter pilot on the ATF as NT Air overflew Blue River. The crew was satisfied with the information received from the helicopter pilot.
Flight Path and Configuration
The flight departed Vancouver International Airport at 0930, with Kamloops as the IFR alternate airport. The aircraft had enough fuel to bypass Blue River, make an IFR approach into Valemount, fly VFR back to Blue River, and still have sufficient fuel to continue to Kamloops under IFR. The flight progressed as planned until the aircraft passed overhead Blue River at the lowest useable IFR altitude, and the pilot was not able to descend under VFR into Blue River. The pilot then climbed back up to an enroute IFR altitude and continued to Valemount under IFR. After conducting the IFR approach into Valemount and finding the weather suitable for flight under VFR, the aircraft completed the 60-nautical mile trip back to Blue River visually. The aircraft slowly descended in steps as it flew south towards Blue River at a reduced cruise speed of approximately 175 knots. As the aircraft neared the aerodrome, the pilots descended to altitudes as low as 1100 feet above ground level to maintain visual contact with the ground in deteriorating weather. Approximately 4 nm from the aerodrome, and 85 seconds before touchdown, control was transferred from the first officer to the captain, who became the pilot flying.
During the approach, the crew rushed to complete the pre-landing checks, visually acquire the runway, and manoeuvre the aircraft to land. The captain turned slightly to the left, away from the runway centreline. At this point, the first officer called visual contact with the runway, and the captain turned right, back towards the runway centreline, and again passed through the runway centreline. The captain did not acknowledge that the runway was in sight.
Runway Conditions
The runway was snow-covered without markings or devices to identify the runway surface. The combination of low overcast and flat lighting conditions in a snow-covered runway environment, as well as the lack of runway edge markings, made it difficult to identify the runway edges. As a result, the pilot was unable to position the aircraft over the centre of the runway as it settled to land. The left main landing gear entered the deeper snow at the runway edge, causing the aircraft to veer into the snow bank.