Toronto pilot, B.C. passenger dead after Oshawa-based plane deploys parachute, crashes in western N.Y.

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JAMESTOWN, N.Y. — A Toronto pilot and his passenger from British Columbia were killed Tuesday when the small aircraft they were in crashed and caught fire shortly after taking off from a western New York airfield, authorities said.

The victims have been identified as Roger Jay Ryall, 52, of Toronto, and 52-year-old David J. Hughes, of B.C., according to WIVB channel 4 in Buffalo.

Authorities said Ryall was the pilot and Hughes was the passenger.

The Cirrus SR22 was based in Oshawa, Ont., and had stopped at an airport in Erie, Pa., before arriving at the Chautauqua County Jamestown Airport, where it was refueled, Sheriff James Quattrone said. The plane crashed about 10 minutes after taking off from Jamestown.

Witness James Mortimer told The Post-Journal of Jamestown that the plane appeared to be above the runway when it started to turn. He said it crashed seconds after he saw a parachute deploy. The small plane was equipped with an airframe parachute, the sheriff said.

“It banked really steeply, like it was in a bank. I said, ‘That’s not right. That’s not good,’ ” said Mortimer, who had been riding his bike in the area. “I thought it was gonna go down right there, but it straightened out again and it turned to the right and flew to the right. … Not even two seconds after it popped the chute it was into the ground.”

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There was no indication the pilot called for help, Quattrone said. The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate, he said.

The names of the victims, both men, were being withheld until relatives could be notified, the sheriff said.

According to WIVB channel 4, the plane had been refueled and was heading for Waterloo, Ont. at 1:41 p.m. The crash happened at 1:52 p.m., according to authorities, with the plane landing in a wooded area within the airport grounds. 

Sheriff Quattrone said several fire and police departments battled an “intense blaze” and noted the plane likely had a full tank of gas in its 92-gallon engine.

-with files from Postmedia Network