No. H011/06
For release April 11, 2006
OTTAWA — Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities Lawrence
Cannon today received the Transportation Safety Board of Canada's final report
concerning Georgian Express flight 0126, which crashed off the western shore of
Pelee Island, Ontario, on January 17, 2004.
"Transport Canada recognizes the Transportation Safety Board's important work
during the investigation," said Minister Cannon. "We have already taken steps to
further improve Canada's civil aviation safety record as a result of this
investigation and will continue to work with the operators, airports, regulators
and the Transportation Safety Board to maintain and build on this record."
In response to the Transportation Safety Board's interim recommendations issued
on October 7, 2004, Transport Canada announced, on the same day, revised
standard passenger weights for operators using them for their calculations. This
change came as a result of Transport Canada's comprehensive review of standard
weight following the accident.
Transport Canada is also finalizing a risk assessment for the use of actual
passenger weights for air taxi operations. To protect the public, strict
regulations are in place, that require air operators to have a Transport
Canada-approved weight and balance system. If followed, the system prevents
overweight flights from occurring. Air operators and pilots are required to
ensure aircraft weight and balance remain within approved limits, including for
example, accurately accounting for heavier individuals in the total passenger
weight.
As noted in the Transportation Safety Board's final report, the U.S. Federal
Aviation Administration has issued airworthiness directives for the Cessna 208
aircraft to ensure pilots have enough information to prevent loss of control
while flying in icing conditions. Transport Canada forwarded these directives to
all affected Canadian operators.
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Contact:
Lucie Vignola
Communications
Transport Canada, Ottawa
(613) 993-0055
Transport Canada is online at www.tc.gc.ca. Subscribe to news releases and speeches at apps.tc.gc.ca/listserv/ and keep up-to-date on the latest from Transport Canada.
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