Mini-tornado at Rockcliffe on Saturday

[mike_cyul]

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Rockcliffe (CYRO), just East of Ottawa. No one hurt, but 17 aircraft destroyed, among them three Challengers (of which a friend sent these photos).


Mike

[mike_cyul]

An update now says 22 aircraft destroyed/damaged.


Mike

[srgalahad]

looks like a sad day for a bunch of owners

any word on damage to the museum or it's aircraft?

(BTW Mike, I'll be down at the end of May/early June. I'll send a PM when I have dates)

Rob

[Panther_99FS]

Yikes!

[mike_cyul]

looks like a sad day for a bunch of owners

any word on damage to the museum or it's aircraft?

(BTW Mike, I'll be down at the end of May/early June. I'll send a PM when I have dates)

Rob


No word from the Museum, but I gather the tornado cut a pretty narrow path - diagonally across the flightline, from the south-west. I expect the Museum may be ok, seeing as it's about 300ft south of the most damaged aircraft.

Latest news is that the owners of the three completely destroyed Challengers (two others were damaged) did not have insurance for this kind of event. I guess that's the end of their hobby, at least for now. Hope they can get back in later.

And Rob, yup, just pm me.

Mike

[srgalahad]

"The front that's hammered the central part of the continent for the past couple of days took a particularly vicious toll on an airport in Ottawa, Canada. On the same night that members of Rockliffe Flying Club were celebrating their annual black-tie Wings Dinner on Saturday night, a destructive weather system ripped through the flight line only yards away on their airport grounds. As they left the dinner, they were greeted by a debris field of aircraft and parts mixed with uprooted trees, a smashed clubhouse, trashed storage boxes, and two inverted aircraft, each of which was left blocking access to the airport's taxiway. According to the Rockcliffe Flying Club Manager Simon Garrett, at least 22 aircraft were damaged by the severe storm, half of which appear to be probable write-offs.

"The destruction was unbelievable," said Garrett. "I wasn't sure how we'd get operational again." The spontaneous efforts of over 80 club members had the airport back in operation by noon on Sunday; however, the club's entire fleet has been grounded pending inspection of damages to their aircraft. Included in the list of aircraft casualties were five or six ultralights that were "torn apart" and tossed halfway along the airport's flight line from where they'd been parked and picketed. Damage to the club's fleet will also force cancellation of all instructional flights until inspections can be carried out. So far, weather specialists haven't determined exactly what hit the airfield, which traces its aviation roots as far back as WW1. A fast-moving cold front appears to have been the culprit in creating what's speculated to have been either a tornado, a squall line or a localized microburst.

More photos:
http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/StormDamages22AircraftInOttawa_200263-1.html#gallery

The "museum" Mike and I spoke of isn't the 'local' variety; it's the Canada Aviation Museum ... the national collection.
http://www.aviation.technomuses.ca/

Rob