Moment pilot ejects before Canadian Air Force Snowbird jet crashes into residential neighborhood

Moment pilot ejects before Canadian Air Force Snowbird show team jet crashes into residential neighborhood

  • A pilot ejected just before a jet from the Royal Canadian Air Force’s Snowbirds exhibition team crashed Sunday
  • The small plane nose dived into a residential neighborhood in the British Columbia city of Kamloops, which is about 200 miles northeast of Vancouver
  • The unidentified pilot’s condition was not known after the crash in Kamloops, and there also were no updates on damages on the ground or casualties
  • The air force confirmed on Twitter that one of its Snowbirds had crashed near Kamloops, but gave no details

Video footage taken by a witness shows when a pilot ejects from a Royal Canadian Air Force Snowbirds exhibition team jet that crashed into a residential neighborhood in the British Columbia city of Kamloops on Sunday.

The pilot’s condition was unknown and there were no updates on possible casualties or damages to property. B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix tweeted that one person was taken to hospital after the crash.

The air force confirmed on Twitter that one of its Snowbirds had crashed near Kamloops, but gave no details. Kamloops is about 200 miles northeast of Vancouver.

 

The Snowbird is seen in the footage just before it came down. The pilot’s condition was unknown and there were no updates on possible casualties or damages to property

The video shot shows two of the team’s Canadair Tutor single-engine jets taking off. 

One of the planes reared up almost immediately before plunging to the ground, crashing just after the pilot ejected.

At least one house caught fire in the Brocklehurst area of Kamloops, which has a population of more than 90,000, reports local television station CFJC.

‘This is a developing situation,’ the Department of National Defence said in a statement, the CBC reports.

‘Our number one priority at this time is determining the status of our personnel, the community and supporting emergency personnel.’

Emergency crews from the Kamloops Airport are responding to the incident, the department said.

Video footage taken by a witness shows when a pilot ejects from a Royal Canadian Air Force Snowbirds exhibition team jet that crashed into a residential neighborhood in the British Columbia city of Kam

Video footage (pictured) taken by a witness shows when a pilot ejects from a Royal Canadian Air Force Snowbirds exhibition team jet that crashed into a residential neighborhood in the British Columbia city of Kamloops on Sunday

The jet and another are seen taking off Sunday in the witness footage

The jet and another are seen taking off Sunday in the witness footage

Smoke is seen coming from the small plane in the footage

Smoke is seen coming from the small plane in the footage

The pilot is later seen ejecting from the Snowbird jet as it continues to plummet to earth

The pilot is later seen ejecting from the Snowbird jet as it continues to plummet to earth

At least one house caught fire in the Brocklehurst area of Kamloops, which has a population of more than 90,000. Smoke rises from the crash site in the residential neighborhood

At least one house caught fire in the Brocklehurst area of Kamloops, which has a population of more than 90,000. Smoke rises from the crash site in the residential neighborhood

Witness Annette Schonewille said she saw the jets take off while she was parked with friends having coffee at McArthur Island Park in Kamloops.

‘The one plane continued and the other one … was a ball of fire,’ she said. ‘No noise, it was strange, and then the plane just did a cartwheel and fell right out of the sky. Just boom, straight down, and then a burst of black, black smoke.’

The crash was the second recent accident involving the Snowbirds. One of the team’s jets fell into an unpopulated area last October before a show in Atlanta, after the pilot ejected.  

The crash was the second recent accident involving the Snowbirds. One of the team's jets fell into an unpopulated area last October before a show in Atlanta, after the pilot ejected

The crash was the second recent accident involving the Snowbirds. One of the team’s jets fell into an unpopulated area last October before a show in Atlanta, after the pilot ejected 

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