While officials from the Transportation Safety Board investigate a fatal plane crash in northern Alberta, the pilot who died has been identified.
An operations manager at a La Crete contracting company confirmed Monday that Ernie Driedger, 52, died after his plane crashed Saturday evening.
CTV News has learned Driedger was from La Crete, and the part owner of Forest Trotter Contracting Ltd. An operations manager at the company described the father of six as an experienced pilot, with years of flying experience.
On Saturday, Fort Vermilion and High Level RCMP were notified at about 6:10 p.m. that the Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Trenton, Ontario had received an emergency beacon signal from a plane that was travelling between La Crete and High Level.
Police said later in the weekend that the pilot of a single engine Turbo Prop PA-46-500TP encountered cloud cover and heavy fog on the flight – reducing visibility to 100 metres.
Anyone with information on the crash is asked to contact Fort Vermilion RCMP at 780-927-3258 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
