[SARA-Members] CASARA member dies in plane crash near Innisfail

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Red Deer Advocate 


Spruce View man dies in plane crash



By Stacy O'Brien - Red Deer Advocate

Published: November 09, 2008 5:06 PM 
Updated: November 10, 2008 8:23 AM 

Many Central Albertans are mourning the loss of a life-long pilot who was
one of the founding members of the Innisfail Flying Club. 

Herluf Nielsen died in an airplane crash late Saturday night, shortly after
taking off from Red Deer Regional Airport heading to the Innisfail Airport.
He was the lone occupant in the aircraft. 

He once told the Innisfail Province that he got the flying bug watching
Harvard trainers fly out of Penhold in the late 1940s and early 1950s as a
boy. He didn't have his first flight until 1960 and had his pilot's licence
by 1961, around the time the Innisfail Flying Club was getting started. 

Alvin Hand, who is one of the original members of the Innisfail Flying Club,
said Nielsen was a capable pilot and had his night endorsement, meaning he
was able to fly at night. Hand, a pilot himself, said losing him is a big
loss to the club. 

Nielsen was a strong supporter of the Experimental Aircraft Association's
Young Eagles program. 

As part of the program, Nielsen and other Innisfail Flying Club members
would take youngsters from Bowden and Innisfail up for 15 to 20 minute
flights over Central Alberta, pointing out landmarks and sometimes flying
over their homes. Hand said Nielsen was one of the most enthusiastic pilots
doing the program. 

Nielsen, 67, loved flying so much that he had a hangar and landing strip at
his farm in Spruce View, where he lived with his wife of more than 30 years
Alice Nielsen. The couple's children Kevin and Kristine and their
significant others gathered in Spruce View Sunday with other friends. 

Nielsen had retired from farming barley, canola and a little wheat, but he
continued to take part in other ways in the community. He was an active
member of the Bethany Lutheran Church in Dickson. 

"He was very involved and got a lot of people in the community flying as
well," said Nielsen's daughter-in-law Nicole Nielsen. "He was a very safe
pilot, so it was very surprising for this to happen." 

She said he had owned his Cessna 182 for at least 30 years and her husband
Kevin (Nielsen's son) had his first ride in it as a baby. Nicole and Kevin
joined Nielsen and Alice on a trip from Whitehorse to Dawson City this
summer. 

"Given what has happened it is something that is nice to look back on,"
Nicole said. She said Nielsen's wife Alice was the navigator and they were
quite a pair. 

Nicole said her father-in-law was a very humble man and known for being
calm. "You would never hear him raise his voice," she said. 

Nielsen's parents had immigrated to Canada from Denmark and he spoke some
Danish. "He loved his coffee, like any good Dane," she said. 

Besides the flying club he also volunteered with Civil Air Search and Rescue
Association (CASARA). 

Nielsen had been taking part in CASARA exercises earlier Saturday evening
before his plane went down. The CASARA volunteers regularly practise doing
search patterns so they are ready when they do have to search for a downed
aircraft. 

"We finished our exercise around 10 p.m. (Saturday) night. We were finishing
up and he was on his way home," said Jim Thoreson, zone commander with
CASARA. Nielsen left the airport around 10:30 p.m. and shortly thereafter
was reported overdue at the Innisfail Airport. 

Thoreson said around 14 CASARA volunteers, along with Red Deer Search and
Rescue started looking for him. Their search was hampered by heavy fog. 

"We were covering all the land around the airport as much as we could,"
Thoreson said. It took until 5 a.m. Sunday morning to find the wreckage near
the Innisfail Airport. 

Jon Lee, Western regional manger of the Transportation Safety Board, said
two investigators from the board were dispatched Sunday and will be at the
site of the crash during the next couple days. He said they'll be
photographing and documenting the crash site, as well as trying to find eye
witnesses to speak with. 

As part of the investigation they look at the pilot's background, his
work/rest cycle and his experience. They will also be examining the
aircraft's maintenance records, refuelling history and anything they can
collect at the site. They will also take the weather conditions into
consideration at the time of the accident. Innisfail RCMP have reported
there was heavy fog at the time of the crash. 

Lee said they don't yet know what caused the accident. "We'll be gathering a
lot of information over the next couple of weeks and as we analyze it we'll
rule out factors that wouldn't have contributed and that will help narrow
the investigation down to where we end up with a cause," he said. 

Contact Stacy O'Brien at sobrien at reddeeradvocate.com

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