B.C. passenger describes falling thousands of feet after lightning strike hits Helijet

Jason Craik said it was a typical lift-off on Tuesday when he and some colleagues boarded the aircraft to head to some meetings in Victoria.

A Langley, B.C., resident shared his potential near-death experience aboard a Helijet that was struck by lightning on Tuesday.

Jason Craik, who rides the Helijet regularly for work, said it was a typical lift-off on Tuesday when he and some colleagues boarded the aircraft to head to some meetings in Victoria.

He said they are used to flying through rain and wind, and thought nothing was out of the ordinary until a loud bang and a white flash of light rattled the aircraft’s cabin.

“About 15 or 20 minutes into the flight, there was a massive boom and a giant flash coming from the front of the cock pit behind the panel. (It) seemed like some sort of electrical short, and then some rough machine noises and a change in tone of the engine,” he told Global News.

“And then, (it felt like us) spiralling down to the ground at a rapid pace, and of course, we were (surrounded) by clouds so it was really tough to tell what was going on.”

Craik then said the aircraft plummeted through the cloud cover and they could see what was happening.

“As we came through the clouds, it was like we were on our side and we looked out the right window and we could see the water and trees,” he said.

“Definitely felt a rapid descent like a weightless feeling. A lot of us thought that was it. We kept rotating (and) some sent texts to loved ones — I sent one to my fiancé.”