A pilot was taken to hospital Sunday night (July 24) after being forced to make an emergency landing near the Qualicum Beach Airport.
The Cessna 172P landed in a ditch near a tree line beyond the eastern perimeter of the airport around 7:40 p.m., according to a news release by Oceanside RCMP.
Victoria-based pilot Akhilesh Shere, who was the lone occupant, was extricated and transported by air ambulance to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Family friend Kalim Mabrouki has started a GoFundMe page for the pilot. Mabrouki said 23-year-old Shere is in Victoria General Hospital for surgery.
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RCMP, B.C. Ambulance Service and Qualicum Beach Fire Rescue Department responded.
The Transportation Safety Board (TSB), Town of Qualicum Beach and the BC Ministry of Environment were notified of the incident.
The TSB has taken over the investigation and said, in a news release, it is deploying a team of investigators to gather information and assess the crash.
— NEWS Staff
