What happened
On the afternoon of 09 September 2013, a Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm BO 105 S helicopter, registered as C-GCFU, departed from the Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) Amundsen to perform ice reconnaissance and measurement tasks in the M'Clure Strait, Northwest Territories. The flight was operated by the Government of Canada, Department of Transport, and carried a pilot, a scientist, and the master of the CCGS Amundsen.
At approximately 1738 Mountain Daylight Time, the crew of the helicopter notified the CCGS Amundsen that they would return to the vessel within ten minutes. However, the aircraft failed to arrive as scheduled. By 1805, flight following systems indicated the helicopter was roughly 3.2 nautical miles from the ship. Following several failed attempts to establish radio contact with the pilot starting at 1818, the crew of the CCGS Amundsen navigated toward the aircraft's last known position. At 1847, debris was located in the water. A search and recovery effort using the vessel's fast rescue craft recovered the three occupants, but all three individuals were deceased.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the circumstances leading to the loss of the aircraft and the failure of emergency signaling. Investigators noted that the helicopter sank to a depth of 458 metres. During the inquiry, it was established that the accident occurred during daylight hours. Notably, the satellite system did not receive any signal from a 406-MHz emergency locator transmitter during the event.