2 Military Members Found Dead After RCAF Helicopter Crash Near Ottawa

Canadian Armed Forces members search around a series of islands on the Ottawa River near Fort William in the Pontiac Regional County Municipality, Que. on June 20, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Spencer Colby)

Minister of National Defence Anita Anand has confirmed that two crew members aboard a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) helicopter that crashed on June 20 near a town northwest of Ottawa have been found dead after hours of searching.

Anand told reporters in Ottawa on the morning of June 21 that the Department of National Defence (DND) will not be releasing the names of the two deceased members out of respect for their families.

Two other military members—whom DND has not identified—were also on board the RCAF CH-147F Chinook that crashed in the Ottawa River just after midnight on June 20 near Petawawa, Ont. They were found by Garrison Petawawa firefighters shortly after and taken to hospital with minor injuries in the city of Pembroke about 16 kilometres away.

The helicopter crew members were carrying out a routine night exercise with the objective of training two of the members as pilots and the other two as supporting crew, Major-General Sylvain Ménard, the RCAF’s chief fighter capability, told reporters during Anand’s press conference.

Neither officials nor Anand would confirm if the two deceased crew members were the pilots.

Anand said flight-safety investigators are looking into the cause of the crash and that the federal government “will continue to update Canadians as soon as it is appropriate to do so.”

The news follows a brief comment by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on June 20 in which he mentioned that some crew members aboard the helicopter were killed but did not specify how many.

DND also did not provide any information about the deceased crew members prior to Anand’s press conference.

Investigation

Asked about the disjointed release of information on the matter, both Anand and Chief of the Defence Staff, General Wayne Eyre, said the situation was evolving “very rapidly” and they were receiving information “quickly.”

When asked by reporters how Eyre felt about the prime minister announcing the deaths before the military, he said people should not be focused “on creating any more controversy.”

“We’re all focused on doing the right thing,” he said. “The right thing for the families, the right thing to determine the cause.”

Ménard confirmed to reporters that there was a camera flight recorder—a “black box”—aboard the helicopter, but said search crews have not yet recovered it.

“Once the thorough investigation is ongoing, we'll have more information to communicate,” he said.

Parts of the crash area have been partitioned off from the public to contain spilled helicopter fuel in order to prevent it from spreading, Anand said.

The Town of Petawawa has also announced a temporary ban on all non-essential watering and stopped “the intake of water from the Ottawa River to its water treatment plant” as a precautionary measure in response to “potentially hazardous materials” in the area from the crash.