Pilot dies after plane crashes near Quebec City during Remembrance Day ceremony
A pilot has died after a small plane crashed Wednesday near Quebec City.
A spokesperson for Quebec provincial police confirmed the male pilot was pronounced dead at the scene.
Quebec Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon said in a social media post that the plane was “scheduled to be used for Remembrance Day commemorations.”
The crash happened at around 11 a.m. in a wooded area near the Saint-Georges airport in Beauce, about 100 kilometres south of Quebec City.
Noovo Info reported the plane caught fire after crashing and there were no other passengers on board.
A witness told Noovo Info the plane apparently broke away from the group of other aircraft flying as part of the ceremony. A woman who witnessed the events from her office window noticed that the plane was flying lower than the others before disappearing behind some trees. Black smoke was then reportedly seen rising into the sky.
Another witness saw the plane nosedive.
The Sûreté du Québec is investigating.
Political leaders in Quebec offered their condolences to the pilot’s family.
The premier said he is closely monitoring the situation with Domestic Security Minister Guy Jr. Lapointe.
“I would like to offer my sincere condolences to his family and loved ones,” the premier said in a post on X.
Quebec Liberal leader Charles Milliard also reacted to the tragedy.
“My deepest condolences go out to the family and loved ones of the pilot who tragically lost his life in the crash of this aircraft in Saint-Georges-de-Beauce while taking part in Remembrance Day celebrations,” he wrote on X.
“My thoughts are with everyone affected by this tragedy.”
