What happened
On the night of 31 May 2013, a Sikorsky S-76A helicopter, operating under the callsign Lifeflight 8, departed from Runway 06 at the Moosonee Airport in Ontario. The aircraft, registered as C-GIMY, was performing a visual flight rules flight toward Attawapiskat Airport, carrying two pilots and two paramedics.
As the helicopter climbed through 300 feet above the ground, the pilot began a left-hand turn to align with the flight path toward the northwest. Approximately 23 seconds after the turn began, the aircraft struck trees and crashed into a swampy area characterized by dense bush. The impact and a subsequent fire destroyed the helicopter. There were four fatalities in the accident.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the sequence of the flight and the failure of emergency signaling. While the aircraft's satellite tracking system recorded the initial takeoff, it ceased transmitting shortly thereafter. Furthermore, the search-and-rescue satellite system failed to detect any signal from the aircraft's emergency locator transmitter (ELT).
A search-and-rescue aircraft eventually located the wreckage at approximately 0543, roughly one nautical mile northeast of the Moosonee Airport runway. Although technicians were deployed to the site, no survivors were found.