Six people who dived into a burning aircraft to save stricken passengers have been recognized with one of Canada’s highest bravery awards.
Several people, most of them drivers, came to the rescue of the passengers after their small aircraft crash-landed and burst into flames short of YVR’s south runway, a few yards off the shoulder of Russ Baker Way, in October 2011.
Both pilots of the Northern Thunderbird Air flight died in hospital, but the heroic efforts of the rescuers saved the lives of seven passengers, many of who were trapped in the burning fuselage.
The six — Jeremy Kerr, John Redmond and Haim Peri, all of Vancouver, Lonney Lee, of Maple Ridge, Shawn Nagurny, of Sardis, and Francis Nand, of Richmond — were all awarded Canada’s Medal of Bravery from David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, at a ceremony at Rideau Hall, Ottawa on Tuesday.
Heroic Richmond father-of-two Nand told the News that receiving the medal from the governor general was a “nice” experience before playing down his role in the rescue.
“I was sitting in my car in the parking lot at McDonald’s when I saw the plane come down,” said Nand, over the phone from Ottawa, moments after receiving his medal.
“I just reacted, I didn’t even think and forgot about my own safety. There was so much smoke and flames, it was hard to tell who was what, but I remember someone, a passenger, kicking the plane door open.
“It was chaotic, it was hot, I was helping drag people out of the plane.”
Nand, who has a wife and two kids aged 14 and 11, said matter-of-factly that, once the rescue was complete, he went back to his car across the road and drove off, as he “had to pick his daughter up.”
Nand’s best friend, Danny Sitnam, president of Richmond-based Helijet, accompanied Nand to the ceremony in Ottawa.
Created in 1972, the Decorations for Bravery recognize people who risked their lives to try to save or protect the lives of others. Above the Medal of Bravery, for acts of bravery in hazardous circumstances, the Cross of Valour is the top honour, for acts of the most conspicuous courage in circumstances of extreme peril; followed by the Star of Courage, for acts of conspicuous courage in circumstances of great peril.
The Beechcraft King Air A100, belonging to Northern Thunderbird Air, had just taken off from YVR on Oct. 27, 2011 for a flight to Kelowna when the pilots noticed an oil leak in the left engine.
They turned the plane around to return to YVR, but crashed on Russ Baker Way just outside the perimeter fencing for the south runway.
The impact caused a fuel leakage that was ignited.
The Transportation Safety Board’s report found the reason the pilots returned to YVR was because the plane's oil reservoir cap on the left engine had not been secured.
When an oil leak became visible, the flight crew reduced power to that engine and made for YVR.
However, the investigation determined the leak was minor and the engine would have continued to function normally until the oil pressure had decreased enough to force the pilots to shut it down.
When the plane was on its final approach to the runway, the report indicates it slowed below its minimum landing speed. And when power was reapplied, likely to just the right engine, the aircraft rolled left and pitched down.
With insufficient altitude to recover, the plane crashed into the ground.
