A preliminary report from the Royal Canadian Air Force into the cause of the fatal Snowbirds plane crash in Kamloops indicates a bird strike likely caused the crash two weeks ago on May 17.

In a report released today, the RCAF says aircraft CT114161 was seen gaining altitude after taking off from Kamloops Airport.

“Shortly thereafter, the aircraft initiated a left turn, followed shortly by an abrupt steep nose low attitude,” the report said. “A detailed analysis of video footage recovered for the investigation revealed one bird in very close proximity to the aircraft right engine intake during the critical phase of take-off.”

The Managing Director of Kamloops Airport told NL News that there were no reports of wildlife, including birds, on or near the runway when the crash happened.

“That’s one of the first thing we did from our side, kind of secure any documentation or reports that might have been out prior to the incident, and there were none that we know of.” Ed Ratuski said.

“No visual reports from flight service, nor were there any reports of any wildlife activity that were out doing field checks earlier in the morning.”

Both occupants in the aircraft – pilot Capt. Richard MacDougall and public affairs officer Capt. Jenn Casey – ejected. Casey was killed, while MacDougall was taken to hospital with serious but non-life threatening injuries. He has since returned home after being released from hospital.

The Snowbirds were heading to Comox at the time of the crash. Snowbirds members have returned back to Moose Jaw while the planes remain grounded in Kamloops.

The investigation will continue to probe the possibility of a bird strike and whether the Tutor jet’s escape devices worked properly. The full results of the investigation could take up to a year to be released.