A North Saanich resident living near Victoria International Airport was glad to see the pilot of a vintage plane walk unharmed after his plane landed on its belly near her home.
The plane said to be a Nanchang CJ-6 crash-landed at the airport just after noon on Saturday.
While Kim Passmore and her husband Doug did not observe the crash, they witnessed its immediate aftermath.
“I knew it was spectacular event, and to have something like that happen and to have it come out as a good outcome for the pilot is amazing,” said Passmore.
“And then his plane looks really good. It looks like he will be able to repair it.”
Passmore was also impressed with the piloting.
“It must have been an amazing piece of flying for the pilot to land himself and his plane in one piece.”
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Emergency crews responded to the downed plane and pictures show them speaking to the pilot wearing a vintage flight uniform. By 1 p.m., a truck had carried away the plane.
It is not officially clear what caused the crash. According to Passmore, the pilot reportedly experienced technical issue on a solo flight over Victoria. Unable to resolve them, he reportedly returned to Victoria International Airport. When he returned to the airport, his landing gear reportedly did not deploy, said Passmore.
“My husband and I drove by a few minutes after it had happened,” she said. “The plane was already down and the pilot was out of the plane.
“I’d never seen such a spectcular airplane up so close,” she said.
“We have a lot of neat planes that fly around and I live close enough that I fortunately can see some of them fly overhead. My husband has told me about the plane, but I have never seen it.”
According to Aerial Visuals, the plane was constructed in 1975 in China before coming to Canada in 2009 by way of the United States. According to the site, the latest known owner of the plane is James C. Hume of Brentwood Bay and the Peninsula News Review has made efforts to reach him through the Victoria Flying Club.
The plane has historically served as a basic flight trainer, but has also been in use for civilian purposes.
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