Sask. man among 6 identified in air ambulance crash off Massachusetts coast

The family of a Saskatchewan plane crash victim has set up a scholarship to support future pilots.

Thomas (Tommy) Henry Farquhar was serving as the first officer on an air ambulance that crashed with six people on board while travelling from Bermuda to Boston, states a release from the U.S. Coast Guard.

Alberta-based Prairie College said Farquhar was a 2023 graduate of Prairie Aviation Training Centre (PATC).

Originally from Regina, Farquhar made the move to Alberta in 2021 to pursue flight school. It was there he met his wife, according to a fundraising page on Prairie College’s website.

“Tommy’s passion for life and the joy that he had was evident to everyone around him,” PATC director Dallas Derksen, said in a news release. “Flying with Latitude gave him the opportunity to use his skill and ability and to help those in need, living out his faith in a very real and practical way.”

According to the school, the scholarship will “support up-and-coming pilots who share Tommy’s passion for aviation and his commitment to using those skills to serve the needs of others.”

The plane, belonging to Hamilton-based Latitude Air Ambulance, lost contact with air traffic controllers on the morning of Oct. 3 on a flight from Bermuda to Boston.

Air traffic control audio suggests the plane was experiencing electrical issues before it went down off the coast of Nantucket, Mass.

Debris from the plane was found later that day and on Oct. 4, the Coast Guard suspended its search for those aboard the flight.

Authorities said six people were on board the plane at the time, including four Latitude staff and two Bermuda nationals.

Latitude confirmed all four flight staff were Canadian.

An investigation is underway by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.

In an email to Global News, Latitude said it is co-operating in the investigation.