First Air flight 852 bound for Cambridge Bay from Yellowknife was diverted back to the Yellowknife Airport Friday due to a mechanical issue.
There were 21 passengers onboard the ATR 42-500 aircraft, which can carry up to 42. Marketing manager with First Air Dan Valin says the aircraft was switched out and the passengers will be leaving on another airplane at 3 p.m.
“The aircraft is being switched out to another aircraft right now, while we investigate the mechanical issue.”
Another aircraft made an emergency landing in Sachs Harbour Thursday. According to a Transport Canada incident report, a Kenn Borek Air Beech 200 flying from Sachs Harbour to Inuvik experienced engine failure 60 nautical miles out.
The plane returned to Sachs Harbour and landed safely at 7:35 p.m., the report states.
A Kenn Borek Air Ltd. staff member informed MyYellowknifeNow the company will not be commenting on the incident.
The two emergency landings come days after a fatal King Air 200 plane crash with two pilots on board. The Air Tindi flight was bound for Whati from Yellowknife, the crash is being investigated by the Transportation Safety Board.
