What happened
A floatplane departed from Vancouver carrying one pilot and two passengers. The flight path included an initial leg of roughly 330 miles to Bella Bella, where one passenger disembarked. Following this, the aircraft traveled 39 miles north to Klemtu, where four additional passengers boarded for the final segment toward Ocean Falls. After failing to reach its destination, a search and rescue operation was launched.
Eleven days after the disappearance, the DHC-2 was discovered in a forested area approximately 6 miles short of Ocean Falls, situated about 100 yards from the shoreline. All three individuals on board were killed in the accident. The aircraft had originally begun its day in Ocean Falls before flying to Vancouver.
Records show that upon arriving in Vancouver after a flight of over three hours, the aircraft was critically low on fuel, with an estimated 4 gallons remaining. Although the aircraft was refueled in Vancouver, no additional fuel was added during the subsequent stops at Bella Bella or Klemtu. During a query regarding his fuel status before leaving Bella Bella, the pilot stated he possessed sufficient fuel to reach the final destination.
Findings
Investigation of the wreckage revealed no evidence of damage prior to the impact. The aircraft struck the ground in a flat attitude with minimal forward speed, and there was no sign of a post-impact fire. While the center and rear fuel tanks remained intact, the forward tank was punctured during the crash. The fuel selector was set to the center tank, and very little fuel was recovered from the rear tank sump.
Although the propeller was not rotating at the time of impact, the engine was found to be in a condition capable of producing power if fuel had been present. Investigators determined that the engine stopped due to fuel exhaustion while the aircraft was in a normal cruise configuration at a low altitude. In an effort to reach a landing site while descending toward an inlet, the aircraft entered a rapid descent and stalled, leading to the heavy impact.