An invalid license, bad weather and out-of-date equipment were all factors in a fatal plane crash in Brant County last November, a report from the Transportation Safety Board says.
Ronald Chamberlain was flying with his wife Mildred on Nov. 13, 2018 when their plane crashed at the Brantford Municipal Airport.
The TSB has released the details of its investigation, saying Chamberlain didn’t have a valid pilot’s license at the time because his medical certificate was invalid.
The board also says there was rain or light snow at the time, weather that the pilot wasn’t qualified to fly in. The plane wasn’t equipped with de-icing or anti-icing systems, either.
The report also found the plane circled the airport for about 30 minutes before it crashed at 1:15 a.m. The airport is closed at night and the plane’s emergency locator transmitter didn’t activate, so rescue crews weren’t called in.
More than two dozen clicks that turn on runway lighting and change brightness were recorded, but no verbal communication.
There were no witnesses; airport workers found the wreckage the following morning.
The report also says it’s unclear where the plane was headed because Chamberlain didn’t file a flight plan or itinerary.
During an autopsy, it was found that Chamberlain had a blood alcohol level of 0.066 per cent, but the report says it’s unclear what the level was at the time of the crash.
The report says there’s no specific blood alcohol limit for pilots, but one section of the Canadian aviation regulations says no one can act as a crew member of an aircraft within eight hours of consuming alcohol, or while under the influence.
For comparison, the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario says drivers on Ontario roads can face serious consequences for being in the “warn range” between 0.05 and 0.08.
