CT114051 - Epilogue

The accident aircraft was one of eleven Snowbirds stationed in Fort St. John, BC, at the North Peace Regional Airport in support of the Fort St. John International Air Show, held July 30-31^st 2022. Two days after the airshow, the aircraft was to be ferried from Fort St. John back to 15 Wing Moose Jaw, SK.

On the morning of the accident, the pilot proceeded to the active runway for a standard departure. Shortly after liftoff, the pilot confirmed a positive rate of climb and raised the landing gear. Immediately after, the pilot heard a loud noise and the engine failed. The aircraft rapidly started decelerating and descending back to the runway. The pilot immediately lowered the landing gear and landed the aircraft straight ahead; however, the landing gear did not have sufficient time to fully cycle back to the down and locked position. The aircraft touched down with only approximately 480 feet of runway remaining. The unlocked landing gear collapsed, the aircraft skidded off the departure end, and impacted the airport perimeter fence at low speed before coming to rest. The pilot secured the engine and immediately egressed the aircraft. The pilot was the sole occupant of the aircraft. The day prior to the accident, the oil filter was changed as part of an out-of-sequence inspection on the engine.

The aircraft sustained very serious damage, but the pilot sustained no injuries.

The investigation determined that the oil filter was incorrectly assembled and restricted the flow of oil to the engine resulting in an engine failure. The main preventive measures recommended are to modify the engine maintenance publication and to test the oil filter for correct assembly and functionality prior to installation on the aircraft.

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