Captain Antoine Forest, who died in a plane crash at New York’s LaGuardia airport last month, will be remembered later today in his hometown of Coteau-du-Lac, Que.
Air Canada Express Flight 8646, a CRJ-900 operated by Jazz Aviation, was carrying 72 passengers and four crew members from Montreal to New York when it struck a fire truck on the runway on March 22.
The crash killed both pilots on board, hurled a flight attendant from the aircraft and sent more than 40 people to hospital. First Officer MacKenzie Gunther was also killed. Services for Gunther have not yet been announced.
The bodies of the two Air Canada pilots were returned to Canada soon after the crash.
Antoine was 30 years old. His LinkedIn page lists him as an employee of Jazz Aviation since December 2022. And his Facebook profile includes photos of him, smiling brightly, on outdoor adventures such as hiking, kayaking, sailing and climbing.
The Jazz Master Executive Council has invited all crew members to stand in solidarity with Forest’s family Friday as they receive condolences. They are encouraged to wear their full pilot uniforms.
The council is with the Air Line Pilots Association, and represents a total of 1,400 Jazz pilots.
The visitation will be held between 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m., and then again from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
It will be held at the J.A. Larin & fils inc. funeral home. A private funeral service will be held at a later date.
Coteau-du-Lac is southwest of Montreal, about 20 kilometres east of the Ontario border.
In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations be made to the CHU Sainte-Justine Hospital Foundation.
