Spate of Manitoba plane crashes to be investigated

The federal Transportation Safety Board says it will look into why there have been four fatal crashes involving small airplanes in Manitoba this past year.

In the latest case, a Cessna 210C aircraft crashed in a farmer's field north of Waskada, a village in southwestern Manitoba, on Sunday.

The crash killed pilot Darren Spence, 37, and his sons Logan, 9, and Gage, 10. A friend of the boys, nine-year-old Dawson Pentecost, also died.

It's the fourth fatal crash of a small plane in Manitoba since May 2012, when an amphibious aircraft crashed in Kapekun Lake east of Lake Winnipeg, killing the pilot.

Two men died when the biplane they were in crashed in August near Manitou, Man., while the crash of a Cessna 208 aircraft in November near Snow Lake, Man., killed the pilot and injured seven passengers.

Peter Hildebrand, a regional manager with the Transportation Safety Board, says he is concerned with the high number of crashes within such a short time period.

"Is there something going on here that we need to look into? Is there something more that needs to be done?" he told reporters in Winnipeg on Monday.

"We're going to be talking to Transport Canada as well to see — have they got some insight into what's happening?"

Hildebrand said the investigation could determine if there are measures that can be taken to reduce the risk of similar crashes.

The safety board's investigation of the Waskada crash could take several months due to the lack of clear leads, officials say.

Community shocked

The latest crash has devastated those living in Waskada, a village with a population of less than 200 people.

Residents described Darren Spence as an experienced pilot who operated a crop-dusting business in the community. The three children were enrolled at the local school.

[IMAGEGALLERY galleryid=3756 size=small]

Grief counselors have been at the school in Waskada since Monday and will stay there for as long as necessary to help students deal with the tragedy, officials say.

"It's a shock, certainly," said Brad Kyle, superintendent of the Sunrise School Division.

"It's one of those things that it appears it will take a very, very long time to get over."

Terry Linto, who knew Darren Spence for 15 years, described him as a man with a big grin who would do anything for his children.

"He was a guy that was willing to give anything to anybody at any time," Linto said.

"He was just a caring person and would do anything for anybody. He never judged anybody. You know, he just was a great genuine guy."

Hockey team hurting

Logan, Gage and Dawson all played on the same Pierson/Waskada Canucks atom hockey team, which is now struggling to deal with the deaths of their teammates.

"When you lose three kids from a team of 12, yeah, it's very impactful and we are hurting right now," said coach Jayson Ryden.

"Nine other families are going through this as well on our hockey team."

The team was scheduled to begin a playoff round against a team from Hartney, but Ryden said families are still trying to decide how to go forward with the rest of the season.

"We want to teach them, I guess, that you know, tragedies happen, and there's a time for mourning and then there's a time to you know, I guess call it, get back on the horse," said Ryden.

Logan, Gage and Dawson's numbers will be displayed on their teammate's helmets when the team plays again.