Kamloops pilot dies as bad Arctic weather downs helicopter
Robert Koopmans
Daily News Staff Reporter
Monday, November 01, 2004
Bad weather in the high Arctic may have been partially responsible for a weekend helicopter crash that claimed the life of a Kamloops pilot.
Jack Bhanwar, a longtime city resident, died Saturday after a Canadian Helicopters Ltd. Bell 212 crashed about 150 kilometres south of Kugaaruk, Nunavut, a remote spot north of Hudson Bay.
Another company pilot and three passengers — technicians with another company — survived the crash.
They were rescued Monday and flown to Winnipeg after a blizzard in the area of the crash subsided enough to allow a rescue plane access.
It’s believed Bhanwar was acting as the first officer on a flight that was ferrying the technicians from an old northern warning system station at Shepherd Bay.
Ken Edstrom, a supervisor with Canadian Helicopters in Kamloops, said Monday that little is known about the crash.
Investigators with the company and Transport Canada will interview the survivors and examine the crash site in the coming days in an attempt to find out what happened.
“There was definitely very heavy weather,†he said. “We have very little information.â€
Bhanwar had worked for Canadian Helicopters for more than 10 years, many of those at the Kamloops base, said Edstrom. Recently, Bhanwar started a job as a pool pilot, giving him the ability to travel and see more parts of the country.
“He was an excellent pilot,†he said. “We’re pretty shocked.â€
Lal Sharma, a former Kamloops teacher and ex-school trustee, was a longtime friend of Bhanwar, who leaves behind a wife of 18 years and two daughters in elementary school. Bhanwar was in his mid-40s.
“Everyone is devastated,†said Sharma. “He loved to fly. He could have had a supervisory role, but he didn’t want to move from flying.
“He just loved it.â€
Bhanwar’s body has not yet been recovered.
