2016 Aero Teknic MU-2 crash

2016 Aero Teknic MU-2 crash

A Mitsubishi MU-2, similar to the crashed aircraft
Crash summary
Date	29 March 2016 (2016-03-29)
Summary	Collision with terrain on approach
Site	Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec, Canada
Passengers	5
Crew	2
Fatalities	7 (all)
Survivors	0
Aircraft type	Mitsubishi MU-2B-60
Operator	Aero Teknic
Registration	N246W
Flight origin	Montreal Saint-Hubert Longueuil Airport, St-Hubert, Quebec
Destination	Îles-de-la-Madeleine Airport, Magdalen Islands, Quebec

On 29 March 2016, a Mitsubishi MU-2 operated by Aero Teknic, a Canadian aircraft maintenance company, crashed on approach to Îles-de-la-Madeleine Airport, killing former Canadian politician Jean Lapierre, several members of his family, and the two pilots. Lapierre was flying to his father's funeral with his wife and three siblings. While one man survived the crash, he died of a heart attack after being pulled from the wreckage.

Before departure, Jean Lapierre mentioned that he was concerned about flying during bad weather. The aircraft left Montreal Saint-Hubert Longueuil Airport in St-Hubert, Quebec at 0931 Eastern Daylight Time and was destined for the Îles-de-la-Madeleine Airport, on Havre aux Maisons island in the Magdalen Islands, also in Quebec. A little over two hours later (1240 Atlantic Daylight Time), the aircraft collided with terrain in Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec, about 2 km from Îles-de-la-Madeleine Airport, the flight's intended destination.

At the time of the accident, there was light rain and mist. The visibility was 4 kilometres with a cloud ceiling of 61 metres. The air temperature was 0°C with east-northeast winds at 37 kilometres per hour, gusting to 56 kilometres per hour. The aircraft had been cleared to land on Îles-de-la-Madeleine's Runway 07 prior to the crash.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) opened an investigation and sent a group of investigators to the site.

Preliminary observations by the investigators indicated that the aircraft was in a slightly left-wing-low-and-nose-high attitude on impact. The wreckage was contained in a field 150 metres square about two kilometres southwest of Îles-de-la-Madeleine Airport; the aircraft had hit the ground and slid for 91 metres before coming to a stop. Examination of the wreckage showed the engines were running until the impact with the ground. The MU-2 was not fitted with flight recorders (which are not required for light aircraft), but a different type of onboard recording device was installed and it appeared to be intact. The wreckage was removed from the crash site and transported to the TSB's laboratory in Ottawa on April 6. The investigation is ongoing. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board sent a representative to the American-built plane's crash site. Mitsubishi also sent investigators to the site.