First Air Flight 6560
First Air Flight 6560 was a domestic charter flight that crashed on landing at Resolute, Nunavut, Canada, on 20 August 2011. Of the 15 people on board, 12 were killed and the remaining three were severely injured. The Boeing 737-200 of First Air was operating a service from Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, when it struck a hill in cloud near Resolute Bay Airport.
The wreckage of Flight 6560 at the crash site | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 20 August 2011 |
| Summary | Pilot error combined with inaccurate compass readings, leading to controlled flight into terrain |
| Site | 1 NM (1.9 km; 1.2 mi) east of Resolute Bay Airport, Resolute, Nunavut, Canada 74°42′57.3″N 094°55′04.0″W |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 737-210C |
| Operator | First Air |
| IATA flight No. | 7F 6560 |
| ICAO flight No. | FAB6560 |
| Call sign | FIRST AIR 6560 |
| Registration | C-GNWN |
| Flight origin | Yellowknife Airport, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada |
| Destination | Resolute Bay Airport, Resolute, Nunavut, Canada |
| Occupants | 15 |
| Passengers | 11 |
| Crew | 4 |
| Fatalities | 12 |
| Injuries | 3 |
| Survivors | 3 |
The subsequent investigation found that a late initiation of the descent, the inadvertent partial disengagement of the autopilot during final approach, a drift in the aircraft compass system and poor communication between the flight crew resulted in the aircraft drifting significantly off course from the final approach path, descending into the ground moments after the crew initiated a go-around.