Quebec pilot killed in Remembrance Day crash near Saint-Georges airport identified as Daniel Parent
The 68-year-old Saint-Georges pilot died Wednesday when his single-engine Mooney crashed in a wooded area after breaking away from a six-plane Remembrance Day formation.
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Daniel Parent, 68, of Saint-Georges, was killed Wednesday when his single-engine Mooney crashed near the Saint-Georges airport, south of Quebec City, during a Remembrance Day commemoration. He was the only person aboard and was declared dead at the scene.
The crash happened around 11 a.m. in a wooded area. The Transportation Safety Board says Parent's plane was flying in formation with five other aircraft when it broke away, as a planned part of the show, then passed beneath the other planes while trying to rejoin, and crashed into the trees. The plane caught fire after the impact.
In Saint-Georges the Remembrance Day flyover is a fixture, and many families come out to watch it every year. Parent had taken part in the ceremony for many years and had flown the Mooney M20C for years, on cross-country trips as far as Alaska, California and the Grand Canyon, according to friends who describe him as an experienced pilot with more than 40 years of passion for aviation. He was a member of the local Beauce flying club, according to the City of Saint-Georges.
Mayor Manon Bougie offered condolences, and flags were lowered to half-mast at city hall and at the airport. The Canadian Armed Forces issued a statement of condolences to the family, though the aircraft did not belong to the CAF and no military personnel were involved. National Defence Minister David McGuinty and Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon also offered condolences.
Quebec provincial police say their major crime unit is investigating for possible criminal elements, though spokesperson Audrey-Anne Bilodeau noted such crashes are rarely linked to a criminal act. The TSB sent investigators to the site the same day. No cause has been published. The TSB has not yet said which classification it will give the occurrence, which determines whether it opens a data-gathering file or a detailed investigation.
