The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) has concluded its investigation into a plane crash that killed a Sarnia businessman last summer.
John Allan Shelley Jr., 65, was flying a 1941 Grumman G-44 Widgeon Aircraft when it crashed in an open field near the Stratford Municipal Airport on August 23, 2022.
The agency said investigators could not determine the complete sequence of events that led to the crash that fatally injured the pilot.
"The aircraft was observed flying in low-visibility conditions, entering and exiting areas of low cloud cover in a steep right angle of bank," the TSB investigation report said. "The aircraft then disappeared from sight and, a few seconds later, an impact sound was heard. Although the actual impact was not observed, smoke from the fire could be seen from a nearby field, and observers called 911. The aircraft had crashed in a cultivated field."
John Shelley Jr. Photo courtesy of Smith Funeral Home.
TSB said there was a significant post-impact fire, the aircraft was destroyed and it was not equipped with a lightweight data recorder.
"The investigation was unable to determine the aircraft’s actual speed during the flight or during the steep turn that was observed shortly before the accident."
The report references an "aerodynamic stall" but doesn't list it as a reason for the crash.
"An aerodynamic stall occurs when a wing’s angle of attack exceeds the critical angle at which the airflow begins to separate. When a wing stalls, the airflow breaks away from the upper surface and the amount of lift is reduced to below that needed to keep the wing flying. While stalls occur at a given angle of attack, they can happen at any speed."
The TSB report said the pilot [Shelley] had departed Chris Hadfield Airport alone to bring the aircraft to a maintenance facility for an annual inspection.
John Allan Shelley Jr. was General Manager of the family business Shelley Machine and Marine on Plank Road since 2009.