Quebec plane crash: Foreign Office confirms four Britons among the dead

The four Britons were among six killed when a seaplane crash landed in Canada

Emilie Delaitre, 28, is confirmed as one of the victims (Facebook)

The Foreign Office has confirmed that four Britons have died after a small seaplane carrying tourists crashed into a woodland area in Quebec.

Five passengers and the pilot were killed when the Beaver seaplane crashed in woodland in the Les Bergeronnes area of the province on Sunday, despite "excellent" flying conditions.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "Sadly, four British nationals were on board the plane that crashed in Les Bergeronnes, Canada.

"Our deepest sympathies are with their friends and family at this difficult time. Our consular officers are ready to provide assistance and we will remain in contact with Canadian authorities regarding this tragic incident."

The spokeswoman said they were not releasing the names of the four British victims at this point.

The plane, operated by Air Saguenay, took off from Lac Long in Tadoussac in good conditions on a sightseeing flight.

Air accident investigator Pierre Gavillet said the crash site suggested that the plane had fallen “vertically” out of the sky.

“What we noticed at first sight is that there is not a horizontal trajectory that entered the trees. We have trees that are intact and we have a plane that is on the ground that crashed vertically, between the trees,” he told CBC News. “There was a post-impact fire. There was a fire in the cabin area.”

Bad weather has since hampered the recovery effort but police now say all six bodies have been found and investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada had arrived at the scene.

Investigators were only able to access the wreckage by parachute or by travelling through the forest on quad bikes.

The bodies are expected to be moved to Montreal today for forensic testing.

Le Journal de Quebec reported that the plane crashed into a mountainside 20km (12 miles) from Tadoussac and everyone on board would have died instantly.

The newspaper said the local pilot was called Romain Desrosiers and named the French victim as Emilie Delaitre.

Monsieur Desrosiers was a "meticulous and prudent" man according to reports and had more than 600 hours of flying experience.

Giles Gauthier, a friend and neighbour of the pilot, told Le Journal:"He was an excellent instructor who knew how to reassure those who got on his plane.

"He was also extremely meticulous. If ever he noticed something that wasn't quite right, he wouldn't fly the plane."

Ms Delaitre's brother, Henri Delaitre Seghetti confirmed on Facebook that she had died saying: "On this black day I hope you have gone to heaven and have fun as you have done in your short life by our sides. One more angel flying in the sky.

"My big sister, know that I have been proud to have been your brother and I will never stop loving you. Emilie Delaitre RIP I love you."

Ms Delaitre, 28, was one of five passengers on the flight alongside the four Britons.

The seaplane was reportedly a De Havilland DHC-2 Beaver, built between 1950-1960, which was being flown by an experienced pilot who had worked for Air Saguenay for more than a decade. The firm said the aircraft was well maintained.

It is not the first time that one of the firm’s Beaver seaplanes has been involved in a fatal accident. In July 2010, one of the aircraft crashed into a mountain in bad weather, killing four of the six people on board. A subsequent investigation found that poor weather conditions hampered visibility and was responsible for the crash.

Additional reporting by PA