Seawind President Dick Silva says the company is temporarily suspending operations after the loss of a test pilot in the crash of the Seawind 300C prototype. In a posting on the Seawind Web site, Silva says the “business interruption” will last until “we can determine the cause of this event and develop a plan to complete the project.” Veteran Canadian bush pilot Glenn Ralph Holmes, 67, died Thursday when the plane crashed near Stead, Manitoba, about 60 miles northeast of Winnipeg. News reports described the aircraft spiraling into a wooded area but Silva says on the Web site that early reports have been inaccurate. The aircraft was equipped with both an engine monitor and a flight data recorder. Although the recorder was damaged in the crash, Silva said it is hoped the data can be retrieved and an accurate picture of the events leading to the crash can be put together. Holmes was described as a safety-conscious pilot who didnt take chances. “We all know he was the best at what he did. ‘Safety first,’ he always told me,” his widow, Liz Holmes, told the Winnipeg Sun.
