Body of Canadian pilot found amid wreckage after Guyana crash
Crews searched for the plane for roughly 11 hours before they found the bodies of Blake Slater and Dwayne Jacobs amongst the wreckage.
Canadian pilot Blake Slater was killed in a plane crash in Guyana on Saturday. His body was found amidst the wreckage on Monday.
Canadian pilot Blake Slater was transporting mining supplies by plane to Imbaimadaiin Guyanaon Saturday when he sent a mayday call at 10:53 a.m.
His plane was going down.
The call was picked up by at least five different aircraft in the area and soon after the CessnaCaravan crashed in the heavily forested area called the Mazaruni, crews scrambled to find him.
“It was extremely difficult to spot the aircraft,” said KitNascimento, a spokesperson for Trans Guyana Airways. “There was no explosion, there was no sign of the accident. It literally disappeared under the trees.”
Slater was able to relay the coordinates of his aircraft before he crashed, but “that was the last contact we had,” Nascimento said.
After an exhausting 11-hour search to locate the plane, Slater and a local cargo handler, Dwayne Jacobs, were both found dead Monday amongst the crumpled wreckage.
Formerly of Toronto, Slater was a graduate of the University of Western Ontario’s commercial aviation management program. He was working for Trans Guyana Airways as a pilot for almost three years, according to his LinkedInprofile.
One of Slater’s friends, described him as a nice, easy-going guy, who was dedicated to the job and got along with everyone.
The investigation into the crash is expected to begin Tuesday by the Guyana Civil Aviation Agency. Nascimento added that these investigations “typically take quite a while, it won’t be in a hurry.”
As of 5 p.m. Monday, members of the Guyana Defence Force were still trying to remove the bodies from the aircraft. They will soon be flown to the capital of Georgetown, according to Nascimento.
A news conference is expected to be held Tuesday at 10 a.m.