Date:	Thursday 9 July 2009
Time:	22:08
Type:	Piper PA-31-350 Chieftain
Owner/operator:	Canadian Air Charters
Registration:	C-GNAF
MSN:	31-8052130
Year of manufacture:	1980
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Category:	Accident
Location:	near the Richmond Auto Mall, Richmond, British Columbia -   Canada
Phase:	Approach
Nature:	Cargo
Departure airport:	Victoria, British Columbia (CYYJ)
Destination airport:	Vancouver, British Columbia (CYVR)
Investigating agency:	TSB
Confidence Rating:	Information verified through data from accident investigation authorities

Narrative:
The Canadian Air Charters Piper PA-31-350 Chieftain (registration C-GNAF, serial number 31-8052130) was operating under visual flight rules as APEX 511 on the final leg of a multi-leg cargo flight from Vancouver to Nanaimo and Victoria, British Columbia, with a return to Vancouver. The weather was visual meteorological conditions and the last 9 minutes of the flight taking place during official darkness.

The flight was third for landing and turned onto the final approach course 1.5 nautical miles behind and 700 feet below the flight path of a heavier Airbus A321, approaching Runway 26 Right at the Vancouver International Airport. At 22:08, Pacific Daylight Time, the target for APEX 511 disappeared from tower radar. The aircraft impacted the ground in an industrial area of Richmond, British Columbia, 3 nautical miles short of the runway.

There was a post-impact explosion and fire. The 2 crew members on board were fatally injured. There was property damage, but no injuries on the ground. The onboard emergency locator transmitter was destroyed in the accident and no signal was detected.

1. CADORS Number:2009P0914
2. TSB Occurrence No:A09P0187 at http://www.tsb.gc.ca/eng/rapports-reports/aviation/2009/a09p0187/a09p0187.asp
3. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://www.vancouversun.com/least+dead+Richmond+plane+crash+reports/1776106/story.html]
4. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://www.theprovince.com/Richmond+plane+crash+kills+least/1776104/story.html]
5. CTV.ca
6. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://www.baaa-acro.com/2009/archives/crash-of-a-piper-pa-31-navajo-chieftain-in-vancouver-2-killed/]
7. http://www.baaa-acro.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/C-GNAF.pdf

Other occurrences involving this aircraft

26 May 1993	N3588Z	Peninsula Airways, Inc.	0	King Salmon, AK		min
8 May 1995	N3588Z	Peninsula Airways, Inc.	0	Dillingham, AK		sub

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
09-Jul-2009 23:21	harro	Added
09-Jul-2009 23:26	harro	Updated
09-Jul-2009 23:49	slowkid	Updated
09-Jul-2009 23:52	slowkid	Updated
10-Jul-2009 07:20	slowkid	Updated
10-Jul-2009 11:31	slowkid	Updated
10-Jul-2009 11:41	Anon.	Updated
10-Jul-2009 22:24	slowkid	Updated
10-Jul-2009 23:15	slowkid	Updated
21-Apr-2015 23:49	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
20-Oct-2017 17:18	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]