'He touched the hearts of a lot of people'

James Joseph Hudson, a hard-working pilot, wore a smile whether he was working or not.

"He loved his family; he'd do anything for his family," Mr. Hudson's brother-in-law, Preston Belben, said.

"He always had a smile, whether he was working hard or just relaxing, he always had a smile. He was a wonderful guy; I tell ya, he touched the hearts of a lot of people."

Jim Hudson, 43, was killed on June 7 when the twin engine aircraft he was flying crashed outside of Port Hope Simpson.

Mr. Hudson, who lived most recently in L'Anse au Loup, was a pilot for Strait Air when he was called upon to medivac a patient from southeastern Labrador to St. Anthony.

Lester Powell, a pilot with Air Labrador, picked up the medivac later that day and brought the patient to St. Anthony.

"He was a good friend and a wonderful pilot," said Mr. Belben, who met Mr. Hudson first as a boy in Black Tickle in the early 1980s. Later, Mr. Hudson married Zonya, Mr. Belben's sister.

Others marveled at Mr. Hudson's work ethic as a dedicated pilot.

"He never minded taking on extra work, extra responsibility," Mr. Belben said. "If he worked for a company, he always wanted to see that company going ahead, never liked to see them standing still or going backwards; he wanted to see the company progress, and he didn't mind putting the time in."

This became obvious when Mr. Hudson piloted planes into Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario from 2005-06.

All the park workers took notice, Mr. Belben said.

"I remember on one occasion, at the dock, I think he was getting ready to take a crew into the park, there was a guy there with 30 years in at the park...after he left he said, 'See that guy there, that's the best pilot ever come in this park'

After taking a year off from flying in 2007, Mr. Hudson wanted to settle down with his family in Labrador, and got a job as a pilot with Strait Air, though he had big offers to fly in the territories.

Mr. Belben recalled a time when he got offered a job in Yellowknife for $85,000 per season.

Mr. Hudson laughed: "What do you think of that?" he said to his brother-in-law. "I think I can get $100,000 a year from that fellow."

The decision was made to settle in L'Anse au Loup, where he wanted Mr. Belben, a carpenter by trade, to help build a house. The planning was settled away last month. In fact, Mr. Belben said, the footing was poured on June 4.

The two last saw each other on June 6, when Mr. Hudson spoke about getting a pellet stove to substitute for electric heat.

"I was doing some work on my house and he left the house and that was the last time I seen him; that was Saturday evening about six o'clock," Mr. Belben said, adding that his brother-in-law loved to cook, when he had the time, and he always seemed to make time.

"He got up Sunday morning, put on dinner before he left and there was only five of them in the family, put on two big chickens in to roast, and left, and there was enough vegetables there for about 10 people. And, little did he know, that day there was going to be 15 or 16 people at his table."

June 7

Charlottetown freight pilot Irving Powell received a morning call from the owner of Strait Air, Ron Letto, who reported people in Port Hope Simpson saw smoke rising from the hills outside town.

RCMP at Mary's Harbour RCMP was dispatched about six km west of town at approximately 8:30 a.m.

Mr. Hudson discussed foggy conditions with ground crews while flying into Port Hope Simpson, from Blanc Sablon, until contact was lost. The Rescue Co-ordination Centre was contacted and dispatched a Hercules from Nova Scotia, while the Canadian Rangers and Triple 4 Squadron from Goose Bay were also called.

But it was Mr. Powell who first located the exact position of the crash at roughly 10:30 a.m. while he, his son and his brother flew in his Cessna 182 aircraft.

"There was still a little bit of smoke coming up when we went over; that made it fairly easy to spot when you got close to the area," Mr. Powell said.

He landed at Port Hope Simpson and advised Mr. Letto that he had spotted the wreckage. Mr. Powell then brought a Canadian Ranger aboard the plane to pinpoint the exact location by using a radio to communicate with Rangers travelling to the site on foot.

"It was sad to see it there, especially where I knew the pilot; well, we were friends, and I'd see him quite often when we'd fly freight into Sandy Cove and he was in here quite often bringing in our freight."

The two freight pilots knew one another for 20 years, Mr. Powell said, having met numerous times in Charlottetown and Port Hope Simpson.

Mr. Hudson would do a favour before you asked, he said.

"He was a real nice guy, you wouldn't meet a nicer feller, he didn't mind going out of his way to try to help, anything he could do for you."

Mr. Hudson's funeral took place at the Gospel Hall in L'Anse au Loup on June 12. He was survived by his wife, Zonya, and sons Andre, Brendon, Jonathan and James.