Britten-Norman Islander crash, Dec 7, 1998 (7 killed), Ba...
Britten-Norman Islander accident on December 7, 1998 near Baie-Comeau, Quebec, Canada with 7 fatalities. Cause: Stall after takeoff with contaminated...
- Date: December 7, 1998
- Aircraft: Britten-Norman Islander
- Location: Baie-Comeau, Quebec, Canada
- Fatalities: 7
- Phase of flight: Takeoff and climb
- Cause: Stall after takeoff with contaminated wings and overweight loading, with a wind shear encounter and a turn back that left insufficient altitude to recover
An Air Satellite Britten-Norman Islander on scheduled flight 501 from Baie-Comeau to Rimouski took off in snow with contaminated surfaces and was over its maximum weight. It stalled after entering cloud during the climb, then turned back and crashed into the St. Lawrence River near the airport. Seven of the ten people aboard were killed and the rest were seriously injured. The TSB found many contributing factors, including inadequate emergency alerting and lack of lifejackets.