Beaver collides with boat landing Tofino

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karmutzen
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Beaver collides with boat landing Tofino

Post by karmutzen »

Rumour it clipped a water taxi on landing. I think the wx was good there today. Everyone on board is reported as ok.
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Last edited by karmutzen on Tue Oct 19, 2021 12:08 pm, edited 2 times in total.
SpyPilot
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Re: Floater flips landing Tofino

Post by SpyPilot »

What's that you say?

A pilot was flying in fair weather and during the landing phase onto the water flippity flopped the floatplane and fortunately all were found to be fine?
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linecrew
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Re: Floater flips landing Tofino

Post by linecrew »

SpyPilot wrote: Tue Oct 19, 2021 12:56 am What's that you say?

A pilot was flying in fair weather and during the landing phase onto the water flippity flopped the floatplane and fortunately all were found to be fine?
Fantastic!
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karmutzen
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Re: Floater flips landing Tofino

Post by karmutzen »

METAR CYAZ 182300Z 15011KT 15SM FEW034 BKN240 11/08 A2998 RMK CU1CC5

https://www.timescolonist.com/news/loca ... 1.24364619

Article has a shout out to the crown resources (Coast Guard - even added the irrelevant detail of the name of the boat that was of no help), though none were needed with all the capable local boats in the area. Last floater flip there was in July (Atleo River Air Services), lost control on takeoff after hitting a boat wake and also ended up upside down. Good reminder to brief your passengers for the inevitable.
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180
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Re: Floater flips landing Tofino

Post by 180 »

The OP might want to edit the title.

The Beaver did not flip on landing.

The Beaver collided while sliding out on the step after landing, with a boat that was travelling at a high rate of speed across the channel.

Not sure who was technically at fault, as I don’t know what direction the boat was travelling in relation to the Beaver. But if they were both on the water, they are technically both boats at that point.

Anyways, there was a collision, and the Beaver sunk nose forward into the water within a few minutes of the collision.

Glad everyone made it out safely.

But it didn’t flip on landing. And specificity matters.
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digits_
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Re: Floater flips landing Tofino

Post by digits_ »

A whole different mental image comes to mind when reading the term 'floater'.
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Rowdy
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Re: Beaver collides with boat landing Tofino

Post by Rowdy »

Plane was coming off the step. Boat hit the left front float and mangled it at a fair speed. Aircraft slowly sank. Couple friends watched it happen.

I cant count how many times the water taxi's there have paid zero attention to anything other than themselves.. either swamping kayakers or nearly colliding with boats and aircraft. I've personally gone around a couple times and had close calls when they weren't paying attention while I was on the water..

Glad no one was hurt!
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180
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Re: Beaver collides with boat landing Tofino

Post by 180 »

If the boat hit the Beaver on the front left side, then it sounds like the Beaver was the stand-on vessel and had the right of way.

Regardless, glad nobody was hurt.
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karmutzen
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Re: Beaver collides with boat landing Tofino

Post by karmutzen »

Here's more of the boat perspective. Sounds like a sit-down (can't call it a powwow 🤭) between parties that share the water is in order. Both boats and floatplanes are essential to living in that area.

https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/ri ... -1.5630073
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pelmet
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Re: Beaver collides with boat landing Tofino

Post by pelmet »

C-FMXR, a float-equipped Viking DHC-2 Beaver airplane, operated by Tofino Air, was returning to
Tofino Harbour (CAB4), British Columbia, after a local sightseeing flight with 5 passengers and 1
pilot on board. During the water landing, after touching down, the aircraft and a water taxi
(C12996BC known as the Rocky Pass) from Ahousaht BC, collided. The docking location for both
the aircraft and water taxi destinations were in close proximity. The vessel had one operator and
two passengers on board. After the collision, the aircraft nosed over and capsized. Everyone on
board the aircraft egressed and was transported to safety by various boats that assisted in the
rescue. Three passengers on the aircraft and one passenger on board the Rocky Pass sustained
minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged, and the vessel sustained minor damage.
The ELT did not transmit a signal. The airplane was recovered from the water and transported to
the company’s facility.
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linecrew
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Re: Beaver collides with boat landing Tofino

Post by linecrew »

Wow, this Beaver has had a rough go the last few years, post-2000.

Scroll to the bottom for the history: https://www.dhc-2.com/id222.htm
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pelmet
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Re: Beaver collides with boat landing Tofino

Post by pelmet »

Traffic from boats and aircraft in the Tofino harbour has become a heightened concern after two float plane crashes occurred in three months this year.

— By Melissa Renwick, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

When a Tofino Air floatplane struck an Ahousaht First Nation water taxi in the Tofino Harbour on Oct. 18, vessel operators started raising questions over the lack of regulation in the open water.

The incident triggered Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council (NTC) President Judith Sayers, who was inside an Atleo Air floatplane that flipped after hitting a sandbar upon takeoff in the harbour less than three months prior.

“I still have a couple of physical injuries that I’m working through,” she said. “It was a very traumatic experience to have to go through.”

Sayers has since committed herself to advocating for changes in regulation and safety standards in the harbour.

“I don’t want anybody else having to go through something like this because of inefficient laws,” she said.

Ken Brown witnessed the October collision near the First Street Dock. He’s now “nervous” to operate his own Ahousaht water taxi business, which transports Ahousaht members between their home on Flores Island and Tofino.

“I would like to see something put in place for safety,” he said. “Floatplanes land right in the traffic that’s coming in and out of Ahousaht and Opitsaht.”

One solution, he said, would be to have a designated landing strip for planes so “they’re not in the line of fire with boats.”

“We have to meet halfway,” he said.

Josh Ramsay, Tofino Air owner and operator, said the airline has been “analyzing the traffic congestion” and boat speeds in the harbour to ensure they’re safely operating alongside the other operators using the harbour.

Since the incident, Ramsay said the company’s flight crew, office staff, as well as maintenance and management employees received emergency training that goes beyond the company’s annual Transport Canada approved training program.

“Tofino Air has been operating in this harbour for over 40 years with this being our first incident,” said Ramsay. “We are working in conjunction with harbour users and the appropriate regulatory authorities to create a safer harbour.”

A local committee of pilots, commercial fishermen, charter operators and harbour users was formed after the incident, according to the Tofino Harbour Authority (THA). Meeting over Zoom, stakeholders are invited to discuss safety concerns.

“Tofino Air is advocating for the installation of an aircraft activated strobe light in the harbour to indicate pending aircraft movement, and a speed limit for when aircraft 1/8s 3/8 are taking-off and landing,” said Ramsay.

THA has jurisdiction over the federal facility at the Fourth Street Dock, but doesn’t have jurisdiction over the marine traffic traveling through the Tofino Harbour or Clayoquot Sound, said THA Manager Kevin Eckert.

“All we can really do here is educate people that use the facility,” he said. “But once they’re off the dock, we have no right to tell them how to operate their vessel.”

Eckert said the RCMP and Canadian Coast Guard do not regularly monitor the harbour for safety.

“It’s a very busy part of the coast,” he said. “We would be better off with someone, at least one person, who has the authority to do something — either hand out fines, or stop people on the water who are operating their vessels unsafely.”

The Canadian Coast Guard station in Tofino is a search and rescue station and does not regulate traffic within the Tofino area, according to a spokesperson for the federal agency.

“Similar to most harbours on the Pacific Coast, Tofino does not have a regime in place to actively manage vessel or aircraft movements,” said Transport Canada. “Vessel operators or aircraft pilots are required to follow safety regulations made under the Canada Shipping Act or Aeronautics Act.”

Because the harbour is considered “open water,” Tofino RCMP Const. Daniel Mcintosh said “there’s no actual monitoring of what’s going on out there.”

While he said it would be “nice to be able to get out more often,” he doesn’t think it’s needed.

“It’s like the highways,” Mcintosh said. “There’s not always somebody out there 24 hours a day. We do what we can when we can and respond to complaints and concerns whenever they come in.”

Floatplane operators and Transport Canada don’t take accidents lightly, said Eckert.

“For there to be two accidents in the last three months is pretty much unheard of,” he said. “There are actions taking place. There’s momentum.”

Transport Canada said their efforts to “improve transportation safety are ongoing.”

These include amendments to the Canadian Aviation Regulations in 2019 that “strengthen the safety of seaplane passengers and crew.”

“As safety is a shared responsibility, Transport Canada encourages seaplane pilots to consider the limitations of other craft on water before they take off, land or taxi,” Transport Canada said. “It is the pilot’s responsibility to fly safely in any weather condition.”

After the October collision, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) deployed a team of investigators to Tofino.

TSB spokesperson Chris Krepeski said the investigation is still in the early stages and could take around 450 days to complete.

“If there’s a significant systemic safety deficiency that requires attention, we don’t hesitate to communicate those before the investigation is completed,” said Krepeski.

Similar to Victoria, Sayers said she would like to see Tofino’s harbour be re-designated to an airport.

“Victoria has been a destination for commercial seaplane traffic since 1920, when the first mail flight arrived from Seattle,” said Transport Canada.

As the harbour became increasingly busy over the following decades, Transport Canada said they conducted several risk assessments that determined the need to “more closely regulate seaplane traffic in the Victoria Harbour.”

“This led to the certification of the Victoria Harbour Airport under the Civil Aviation Regulations in 2000,” said Transport Canada. “Victoria Harbour is the first certified water aerodrome in Canada and is the only water airport in the country that is certified in this manner.”

Tofino is currently designated as a water aerodrome.

In 2019, Transport Canada developed a Notice of Proposed Amendment (NPA) to address water airports. They are now in the “advanced stages of finalizing water airport regulations.”

According to the NPA, one option would be to require that all water aerodromes become certified as a water airports if they are located in “the built-up area of a city or town, or have a scheduled passenger service.”

Both plane collisions in the Tofino Harbour involved Nuu-chah-nulth members. Sayers said she wants to ensure plane safety “is at its highest” and needs to see more than a list of recommendations from the TSB.

“There has been a lack of follow through by Transport Canada,” said Sayers. “It’s very concerning… the safety of our people is the most important thing. We use water taxis and floatplanes to travel to get to our communities. They’re just necessary.”
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pelmet
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Re: Floater flips landing Tofino

Post by pelmet »

karmutzen wrote: Tue Oct 19, 2021 7:34 am Last floater flip there was in July (Atleo River Air Services), lost control on takeoff after hitting a boat wake and also ended up upside down.
Heard that one was a boat wake combined with swells which made things worse. Multiple swell hits while barely airborne. More boats were around making waiting for one wake to disappear result in other wakes being formed.

" C-GYJX, a float-equipped Cessna A185F operated by Atleo River Air Service Ltd., was conducting a flight from Tofino Harbour Water Aerodrome, BC (CAB4) to the Hesquiaht First Nation located in Hot Springs Cove, BC, with 1 pilot and 4 passengers on board. During takeoff, the aircraft momentarily became airborne before control was lost and the aircraft nosed-over in shallow water. All occupants were able to exit the aircraft onto a sandbar, with minor injuries reported. The aircraft was substantially damaged."


https://twitter.com/kekinusuqs/status/1 ... 9784549377

https://hashilthsa.com/news/2021-07-26/ ... no-harbour
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mmm..bacon
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Re: Beaver collides with boat landing Tofino

Post by mmm..bacon »

Update to the 2021 crash. One of the pax on board has now filed suit:
https://www.timescolonist.com/local-new ... MAIL_ID%5D
The president of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council has filed a civil claim against Atleo Air Service seeking damages after one of its planes flipped in Tofino Harbour two years ago, plunging her upside down into the water.

Judith Sayers, who was a passenger in the Cessna A185F floatplane, said her head was submerged as she was trapped inside the plane, running out of air.
etc...
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