The pilot of a Cessna 185 on floats escaped injury after his aircraft collided with a Cessna 172 near the northern Alberta city of Fort McMurray on Sunday but his flight home will be one to remember. Both occupants of the 172, a training airplane from a Fort McMurray flight school, died in the resulting crash and their bodies were found in a remote area about 30 miles from the airport. The tragedy has piqued interest worldwide because of a chance video (strong language) shot by a helicopter mechanic at the airport.
The video shows one of the floats flapping in the slipstream as the pilot heads for the grass at the airport. On landing, the aircraft goes up on its nose but it appears it hasn’t even finished rocking back before the pilot is out and running in the direction of a waiting fire truck. Details of the collision are still under investigation and Canada’s Transportation Safety Board will conduct a full probe.
