Flight 21 Disintegration Over British Columbia (CF-CUQ)

Flight Details and Route Information Flight 21 was operating as a scheduled domestic service from Vancouver, British Columbia, to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. The planned route included stops at Prince George, Fort St. John, Fort Nelson in British Columbia, and Watson Lake in the Yukon Territory. The aircraft departed at 1442 hours Pacific Standard Time on an instrument flight plan for Prince George, utilizing Victor 300 and Blue 22 airways. While traveling northbound on Blue 22 near Hope, the aircraft was observed by CPA Flight 22, and communication was established between the two flights. At 1517 hours, Flight 21 requested and received clearance to proceed directly from its position north of Hope to Williams Lake, a track that would pass to the west of Ashcroft. At 1529 hours, the flight reported to the Vancouver Air Traffic Control Centre that it had passed Ashcroft at 1527 hours at 16,000 feet, estimating arrival at Williams Lake at 1548 hours. This transmission was acknowledged by the Vancouver Centre. At 1538 hours, the Vancouver Centre attempted to contact Flight 21 but received no reply. Approximately two minutes later, three mayday calls were heard by the Vancouver Centre. Around the same time, witnesses observed a four-engined aircraft, later identified as Flight 21, flying in clear weather over the Gustafson Lake area, about 20 miles west of 100 Mile House, British Columbia. The aircraft appeared to be in normal flight when an explosion was heard, followed by the observation of smoke and the separation of the tail from the fuselage. The main portion of the wreckage assumed a nose-down attitude and spiraled to the left before crashing into a wooded area approximately 4.5 miles north of Gustafson Lake. The accident occurred at 1541 hours, and there were no survivors among the 52 occupants.