Plane that disappeared into B.C.'s Fraser River hit power lines before crash: TSB

A Transportation Safety Board report says a smallplanethat vanished in B.C.'s Fraser River last June hit a power line before sinking into the river.

The Cessna 172M left Boundary Bay Airport on June 6 with two men aboard, an instructor and his student.

The report says theplanewas flying in Abbotsford, B.C., along the river at a low altitude and was just 38 metres above the water when it clipped a power line.

Witnesses who called 911 reported seeing a low-flyingplane, a splash and then the partially submergedplaneon the river.

When emergency responders arrived, theplanehad disappeared and a search over several months using divers, underwater imaging and other equipment has found no trace of theplaneor its occupants.

The report's conclusion says low-altitude flight always presents a higher risk, with hazardssuch as power lines that aren't physically marked and difficult to see in time to avoid a collision.

"Flying at low altitude also reduces the margin of safety in the event of engine failure, a loss of control, or any other unexpected circumstances, and increases the risk of an impact with the ground or an obstacle,'' says the report released Thursday.