A man was killed on Wednesday in a plane crash in Yoho National Park.
The man, whose name has not been released yet, was flying a 180 Cessna plane with his dog from Vulcan, AB to Springhouse in northern BC. Police and Parks Search and Rescue were notified when the man didn’t show up to his expected location on time.
“He was using a SPOT device, but the device stopped tracking at around 8 am yesterday morning,” said Brad White, Visitor Safety Specialist for Banff, Yoho and Kootenay National Parks. “That gave us his last known position.”
The Rescue Coordination Centre and Parks Search and Rescue both participated in the search, using a Buffalo plane and several other aircrafts.
“We got the signal from the Emergency Locator Transmitter at the Otterhead drainage,” said White. “From there, a team of rescuers were heli-slung on to the site where they found the deceased pilot.”
The crash location was at 1,600 meters, near Mount Vaux in Yoho National Park.
Although the dog, Rusty, was not at the crash scene, crews found him on Friday in healthy condition.
An investigation is underway to determine the why the plane crashed.