Fraser Valley – ORIGINAL TSB Story – The occurrence
On 5 April 2025, a Cessna 172S aircraft operated by Chinook Helicopters (1982) Limited with an instructor and a student on board departed Abbotsford Airport, British Columbia (BC), on a simulated instrument training flight under visual flight rules.
At approximately 12:30 pm local time, the aircraft took off and proceeded east. It was last observed on radar at around 12:39 pm, flying over the Chilliwack River Valley at an altitude of approximately 2125 feet above sea level. The aircraft subsequently collided with mountainous terrain in a remote valley.
At approximately 1:06 pm, an emergency locator transmitter (ELT) signal was received by the Canadian Mission Control Centre and relayed to the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Victoria, BC. Two minutes later, a crash detection notification was sent from an Apple device on board.
Both occupants were fatally injured. The aircraft was destroyed. There was no post-impact fire. Chilliwack Search and Rescue and Canadian Armed Forces Search and Rescue personnel deployed to the site and recovered the occupants. The TSB deployed a team on 9 April 2025, and the wreckage was transported to the Pacific Regional Office on 14 April 2025.
March 18 2026 UPDATE
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) released its investigation report (A25P0041) into the fatal collision with terrain involving a Cessna 172S airplane operated by Chinook Helicopters Ltd. The accident occurred on April 5, 2025, during a training flight in mountainous terrain near Abbotsford, British Columbia.
The TSB conducted a limited-scope, class 4 investigation into this occurrence to advance transportation safety through greater awareness of potential safety issues. See the Policy on Occurrence Classification for more information.
The TSB is an independent agency that investigates air, marine, pipeline, and rail transportation occurrences. Its sole aim is the advancement of transportation safety. It is not the function of the Board to assign fault or determine civil or criminal liability.
