The cause of a Canadian Forces Snowbirds aircraft crash in August has been traced down to an improperly built oil filter.
The incident involving one of the team’s CT-114 Tutor planes happened on Aug. 2 in Fort St. John.
Forces Canada says the engine failed just after take-off while the plane’s landing gear was being retracted. They add the plane started descending rapidly and the pilot selected the landing gear again, trying to land in a straight line.
The aircraft’s landing gear could not deploy in time, according to Forces Canada, and it touched down with about 150 metres of runway left.
It slid off the end and travelled a total of over 300 metres, according to the Snowbirds.
They say the aircraft had serious damage, but the pilot was the only one on board and was uninjured.
With the problem found, the Snowbirds are now cleared to fly and will be heading to Penticton soon.
“Having not flown since early August, our team will take the necessary time to retrain and get back in the air,” said the team in a Facebook post. “Consequently, we will not be attending the remaining airshows this season.”
The investigation is now looking at human factors that could have led to the engine failure.
