The helicopter crash at Langley’s airport Thursday is unlikely to get a major investigation by the Transportation Safety Board, as no one was killed or injured.
“The occurrence was reported to the TSB, we are currently assessing the event, following up with the parties involved, and gathering data, but we are not planning to deploy at this time,” said a spokesperson for the TSB, Alexandre Fournier.
The crash tore off parts of the helicopter’s rotors and left it lying on the ground near one of the landing pads at Langley Regional Airport.
However, the pilot walked away unharmed and no one on the ground was hurt, either.
According to the TSB’s policies, there are between 3,000 and 4,000 “transportation occurrences” every year in Canada. The TSB does not investigate car crashes, but it looks into airplane and helicopter incidents, rail crashes, boat and ship sinkings, and even pipeline incidents.
“Practical considerations dictate that only a small proportion of these occurrences can be fully investigated,” according to the TSB’s policy on classifying such events.
READ MORE: Pilot walks away after helicopter crash at Langley airport
The TSB decides whether or not to investigate depending on a number of factors, including whether anyone was killed or injured, if there was some sort of dangerous goods released as a result, and whether or not the incident could be linked to some ongoing or widespread safety issue.
In the absence of some of those factors, the TSB may only compile a brief report, or gather data without sending out investigators.
The last Langley-related incident investigated by the TSB was the Aug. 1, 2018 crash of a Cessna operated by Fort Langley Air that crashed at Tyaughton Lake, killing a senior pilot and passenger and seriously injuring a junior pilot.
