When some 500 personnel of the Canadian Armed Forces set out on their yearly training exercise that included conducting a rescue of survivors from a simulated airliner crash site, little did they suspect that within a few hours they would be doing this very thing for real.
First Air Flight 6560, a Boeing 737-200 was flying from Yellowknife to Resolute Bay with 15 people on board, including four crew, when it hit a small hill in increment weather. 12 people, including all the crew, were killed in the accident.
Personnel of the Canadian Forces participating in the annual Arctic military exercise Operation Nanook were immediately called in to conduct rescue operations. Their nearness was key to saving the survivors. Experts in the area agreed that the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre AFB Trenton would probably not be able to send a team this far North as quickly in normal circumstances.
In any case, the crash has highlighted the need to look into how response times to remote locations can be shortened, officials said.
The Arctic aviation community is a tightly knit family and the crash has hit everyone in the business. First Air provides scheduled passenger and cargo service between 25 northern communities with connections to Edmonton, Winnipeg, Montreal and Ottawa. The airline began in 1946 as Bradley Air Services, offering charter, surveying, passenger and cargo flights across northern Canada.
The Arctic is a very tough environment for pilots. While they perform essential services flying supplies and personnel in and out of those remote communities, the infrastructure is anything but ideal. Things are only made worth by weather. When the air gets warm in the summer, water in the lakes remains cold and air passing over a lake cools suddenly, creating fog that rolls over the place. Resolute Bay is near such a body of water and fog is a frequent visitor as a result.
In spite of the challenging environment, flying in the High-North of Canada has been remarkably safe, a testimony to the dedication of the men and women operating there.
