When a Trans States Airlines Embraer ERJ 145 skidded off the runway in Ottawa on September 4 in wet weather, resulting in no injuries, the relatively minor accident at first generated the modest press coverage it deserved. But something seemed familiar about this runway excursion. In fact, not much more than a year ago another Trans States ERJ 145 overran Ottawa’s 8,000-foot Runway 07-25 by some 500 feet, again in wet weather. Both pilots and one of the 33 passengers suffered minor injuries in that accident, after the airplane’s nose gear collapsed in the soft ground.
A little digging uncovered a 2004 accident involving yet another Trans States ERJ 145 in Ottawa. Although the Transportation Safety Board of Canada cited “operational and human factors” in its final report–the aircraft approached “high, fast and not stabilized,” before touching down almost halfway down the runway–it also noted that the smooth landing most likely contributed to hydroplaning.
Gregory Polek has spent his entire career in aviation journalism with AIN, starting as a proofreader and assistant to then-managing editor Mary Mahoney in 1995 after serving an internship with New Jersey Monthly magazine and completing his B.A. degree in English/Writing at New Jersey’s William Paterson College. By 1997 Polek accepted a position as an associate editor, covering the regional airline beat for Aviation International News in place of retiring industry veteran Don Anderson. The assignment took Polek across North America and Europe to profile regional airlines varying in size and mission from the likes of floatplane operators Kenmore Air and Chalk’s Ocean Airways to regional jet operators such as SkyWest and American Eagle. Today, in his dual role as Air Transport Editor and International Airshow Editor, Polek writes, edits, and manages AIN’s commercial aviation content while overseeing each of the company’s daily international air show publications in Paris, Farnborough, Singapore, and Dubai. Most recently Polek has assumed oversight of daily coverage of the Helicopter Association International’s annual Heli-Expo convention.
