The pilot of a small plane was airlifted to hospital with serious injuries after making an emergency landing at Qualicum Beach Airport on Sunday evening.
The plane missed the runway at the airport, located between Qualicum Beach, British Columbia, and Parksville, British Columbia.
A statement from the town of Qualicum Beach says the Cessna 172 was forced to make the emergency landing around 7:45 p.m.
Mounties, firefighters and paramedics responded to the scene and located the aircraft in a ditch just past the eastern perimeter of the airport.
The pilot, who was the sole occupant of the aircraft, was extracted from the plane and airlifted to hospital, according to the police and the municipality.
In a statement, the town of Qualicum Beach said the pilot was in “serious condition,” while Oceanside RCMP said the pilot’s injuries were not considered life-threatening.
IDENTIFIED DRIVER
The organizer of an online fundraising campaign that began Monday morning identified the injured pilot to CTV News as Akhilesh Shere, of Victoria.
Organizer Kalim Mabrouki wrote on the GoFundMe page that Shere was airlifted to Victoria General Hospital in “serious but stable condition”.
“Akhi recently graduated as a commercial pilot and is about to start his career as a professional pilot,” Mabrouki said.
“Akhilesh is loved by many in the aviation community, and he is a dynamic young man with an unparalleled personality with a life full of dreams ahead of him.”
Mabrouki said the goal of the fundraising campaign was to “relieve some of Akhi’s financial stress and let him recover quickly and fully.”
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada is currently investigating the accident and the British Columbia Ministry of Environment has been notified of the incident, according to the RCMP.
The airport was closed while emergency crews responded.
