3 killed in mid-air near Toronto
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3 killed in mid-air near Toronto
3 killed in mid-air collision
Debris scattered across Caledon fields after planes crash
Investigators will probe radar tapes to track flight paths
Aug. 5, 2006. 12:22 PM
KEVIN MCGRAN, BOB MITCHELL AND MEGHAN HURLEY
STAFF REPORTERS
www.thestar.com
A flight instructor and a student pilot are believed to be among three people who were killed in a collision above a farmer's field northwest of Toronto.
The Transportation Safety Board is probing the cause of yesterday's rare mid-air collision between the Cessna 172 from the Brampton Flying Club and a Cessna 182 from Burlington Airport.
Donald Enns, a senior investigator with the board, said the aircraft from the flying club was on a training exercise, while the Cessna 182 was privately owned and based out of the airport.
The three killed were identified today as Ryan Sumere, 28, and Vinoo Abraham, 26, both of Mississauga and David Norton, 57, of Burlington. The collision over a Caledon farmer's field occurred under clear and sunny skies. Police and emergency personnel, including the coroner, were on the scene soon after receiving a 911 call at about 12:40 p.m.
Debris from both of the four-seater aircraft was scattered about a kilometre apart in fields on either side of Willoughby Rd., just north of Charleston Sideroad, about 2 kilometres west of Highway 10.
Investigators will pore over radar tapes to track the flight paths. They'll also be checking the experience and background of each pilot to determine why they didn't or weren't able to pull away from each other in time to avoid the disaster.
Enns said mid-air collisions are extremely rare and the last one he remembers occurred about five years ago.
"There was absolutely nothing to restrict your vision," Enns said. "I don't know the directions these guys were flying. I don't know what they're visual reference was going to be from one to the other. I don't know what they were doing."
Enns said the two pilots were flying on a VFR flight plan — visual flight rules — meaning they weren't in clouds and could always see the ground.
"If they were heading straight toward each other, each should have pulled to the right — as cars do — to avoid each other," he said.
"Assuming everything else is equal, you're going to usually make a turn to the right. But things are not like they are on a highway.
"One airplane might be high, one airplane might be low. They might not be on a direct head-on course. If you see an airplane coming at you from above and to the right, your automatic reaction is going to be to deviate left and down.
"We'll be looking at radar tapes and see if we can track these two airplanes. You never rule anything out at this point in the game."
Brampton Flying Club officials said they were told by police to say little, except they confirmed that one of the planes was based out of their airport.
OPP Constable Linda Kennedy said debris from one of the planes fell "virtually in the backyard" of a red farmhouse on the east side of Willoughby Rd.
"The people in the farmhouse were the ones who called our communication centre. They saw part of the plane crash but not the actual collision."
Police said nobody was injured on the ground.
Two young boys cutting lawns in the area heard what sounded initially like an engine backfiring and then an engine stall followed by another sound of an engine backfiring. They later found small pieces of debris on Willoughby Rd.
Debris scattered across Caledon fields after planes crash
Investigators will probe radar tapes to track flight paths
Aug. 5, 2006. 12:22 PM
KEVIN MCGRAN, BOB MITCHELL AND MEGHAN HURLEY
STAFF REPORTERS
www.thestar.com
A flight instructor and a student pilot are believed to be among three people who were killed in a collision above a farmer's field northwest of Toronto.
The Transportation Safety Board is probing the cause of yesterday's rare mid-air collision between the Cessna 172 from the Brampton Flying Club and a Cessna 182 from Burlington Airport.
Donald Enns, a senior investigator with the board, said the aircraft from the flying club was on a training exercise, while the Cessna 182 was privately owned and based out of the airport.
The three killed were identified today as Ryan Sumere, 28, and Vinoo Abraham, 26, both of Mississauga and David Norton, 57, of Burlington. The collision over a Caledon farmer's field occurred under clear and sunny skies. Police and emergency personnel, including the coroner, were on the scene soon after receiving a 911 call at about 12:40 p.m.
Debris from both of the four-seater aircraft was scattered about a kilometre apart in fields on either side of Willoughby Rd., just north of Charleston Sideroad, about 2 kilometres west of Highway 10.
Investigators will pore over radar tapes to track the flight paths. They'll also be checking the experience and background of each pilot to determine why they didn't or weren't able to pull away from each other in time to avoid the disaster.
Enns said mid-air collisions are extremely rare and the last one he remembers occurred about five years ago.
"There was absolutely nothing to restrict your vision," Enns said. "I don't know the directions these guys were flying. I don't know what they're visual reference was going to be from one to the other. I don't know what they were doing."
Enns said the two pilots were flying on a VFR flight plan — visual flight rules — meaning they weren't in clouds and could always see the ground.
"If they were heading straight toward each other, each should have pulled to the right — as cars do — to avoid each other," he said.
"Assuming everything else is equal, you're going to usually make a turn to the right. But things are not like they are on a highway.
"One airplane might be high, one airplane might be low. They might not be on a direct head-on course. If you see an airplane coming at you from above and to the right, your automatic reaction is going to be to deviate left and down.
"We'll be looking at radar tapes and see if we can track these two airplanes. You never rule anything out at this point in the game."
Brampton Flying Club officials said they were told by police to say little, except they confirmed that one of the planes was based out of their airport.
OPP Constable Linda Kennedy said debris from one of the planes fell "virtually in the backyard" of a red farmhouse on the east side of Willoughby Rd.
"The people in the farmhouse were the ones who called our communication centre. They saw part of the plane crash but not the actual collision."
Police said nobody was injured on the ground.
Two young boys cutting lawns in the area heard what sounded initially like an engine backfiring and then an engine stall followed by another sound of an engine backfiring. They later found small pieces of debris on Willoughby Rd.
