B.C. heli-skiing company names pilot killed in crash

Helicopter pilot Mark McGowan is seen in a photo on his LinkedIn profile.

The pilot of the helicopter that went down in the remote backcountry outside Terrace, B.C., last Monday has been confirmed as one of the people killed in the crash. 

Three people died in the Jan. 22 heli-skiing accident, and a fourth later succumbed to his injuries. Three remaining survivors are recovering in Vancouver in stable condition.

The pilot, Mark McGowan, was identified in a joint statement Monday from Terrace-based Northern Escape Heli-Skiing and Kelowna-based Skyline Helicopters.

“Mark was a phenomenal pilot and a much-loved part of the Skyline Helicopters team. His skills, friendship and good cheer will be greatly missed by our community,” general manager Gareth Shanks said in the statement.

“We are devastated by the loss,” he added.

According to LinkedIn profiles matching McGowan’s description, he had been a helicopter pilot for at least 30 years.

“Mark was an outstanding pilot and a mentor to many. I worked with him for over a decade and always enjoyed flying with him. He was a consummate professional,” Northern Escape president John Forrest said in the statement.

The other victim identified on Monday was Lewis Ainsworth, a mountain guide from New Zealand.

Ainsworth was in his second year as a guide with Northern Escape, Forrest said, and was a “rising star” in the mountaineering industry.

“He was friendly, helpful, passionate and amazingly talented,” he continued.

A celebration of life ceremony is being held for Ainsworth in Vancouver Monday, the companies said.

“Our industry suffered a massive loss with the passing of these two men. Everyone who worked with them is grieving,” Forrest added.

The other two victims have been identified by family members and Italian media as Heiner “Junior” Oberrauch, 32, and Andreas Widmann, 35. Among the survivors were Oberrauch's brother, Jakob and friends Emilio Zierock and Johannes Peer, according to the Oberrauch family. They were part of a larger group of 15 from Bolzano, Italy.

The bodies of the three victims who died in the crash were recovered from the wreckage on Sunday, after six days on the mountain.

Mounties said poor weather prevented them and search and rescue crews from recovering the remains in an area only accessible by air.

The crash remains under investigation by the RCMP, the Transportation Safety Board and WorkSafeBC. Both Northern Escape and Skyline Helicopters have vowed to work closely with all relevant authorities to find out the cause of the tragedy.