Broken rotor blade caused WestJet fire, forced landing in Kelowna, B.C.: safety board

The Transportation Safety Board says a pilot of a small aircraft that crashed into a mountain west of Calgary last year decided to keep flying despite poor visibility. The Transportation Safety Board logo is seen in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-TSB *MANDATORY CREDIT*

The Transportation Safety Board says a broken rotor blade caused an engine fire that forced a WestJet aircraft to make an emergency landing at the airport in Kelowna, B.C.

A safety board report released Tuesday describes the incident involving a WestJet De Havilland Dash 8-400, which is a turboprop aircraft. bound for Calgary on March 3, 2023.

The aircraft left Kamloops with 74 passengers and four crew members but as it moved into cruising speed, an engine fire warning sounded in the cockpit.

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The report says one of the plane’s engines experienced a “surge” and a subsequent fire in the exhaust duct, prompting the crew to declare an emergency, shut down the engine and divert to Kelowna, where the plane landed safely with one engine.

The board says its probe found a fractured rotor blade in the engine compressor caused a surge and loss of power, forcing the engine control system to increase the fuel flow, setting off the fire.

In response, the board says Pratt & Whitney Canada, De Havilland Aircraft and WestJet Encore Ltd. have implemented inspections to reduce the risk of rotor blade failures.

Further inspection by WestJet also identified two other engines with fractured compressor rotor blades.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 22, 2026.

The Canadian Press