'The world shattered' for parents of victim in Fort Smith, N.W.T., plane crash

Tony Alba vividly remembers the day, just over a year ago, when he drove north with his son Paszolo Alba from Edmonton to Fort Smith, N.W.T., where Paszolo was about to start a new job with Northwestern Air Lease.

"He was very excited about it," Tony recalled.

"I fully remember it, it was January 15 of last year, 2023, when him and I drove to Fort Smith, so that he could take all his belongings, you know, and his car. So he was so very happy."

Now, Tony and his wife Carol are mourning for their son and trying to imagine how to carry on without him. Paszolo, 24, was among the six people who died last week when the Northwestern Air Lease plane he was in crashed and caught fire near Fort Smith, N.W.T. One person survived the crash.

Speaking to CBC News on Tuesday from their home in Edmonton, Tony and Carol Alba often struggled to hold back their tears while talking about "our beloved son."

"It's painful, and the absence of Paszolo makes it unbearable every single day," said Carol.

"It feels like the world shattered," said Tony.

Paszolo, the older of Tony and Carol's two sons, had long aspired to be a pilot.

Paszolo had ambitions to become a commercial pilot, his parents said. (Submitted by Tony Alba)

Tony, originally from the Philippines, had studied as an aeronautical engineer but never pursued a career in aviation after immigrating to Canada. He believes his son — always disciplined, ambitious and forward-looking, Tony said — was inspired to fulfil his father's dreams by becoming a commercial pilot.

Taking a job with Northwestern Air Lease was going to be a stepping stone to bigger and better things, Paszolo's parents explained. Paszolo had started by studying aviation management in Edmonton and then got a job in customer service with Central Mountain Air. From there, he was hired as a first officer with Northwestern Air Lease.

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"He was full of, you know, happiness, full of very, very enthusiastic, and as I said, always very ambitious," Carol said.

"I think he wants to be remembered as a man who always [had] a drive to life ... always there's ambition and always, 'don't waste your time.'"

The Albas describe Paszolo as someone who worked hard and always wanted to make the most of life. (Submitted by Tony Alba)

Paszolo enjoyed being in Fort Smith, the Albas said. It didn't take him long to get to know most everybody in the small, tight-knit community, and he made friends easily.

The Albas describe their son as a natural leader who, despite his smaller stature, was looked up to by his friends.

"His friends were, you know, huge, tall — but you know, with this positive and very ambitious type of person, they followed him."

Crash investigation ongoing

The cause of last week's crash is not yet known. Freezing rain this week has meant the Transportation Safety Board of Canada has not been able to fly in the helicopters that will move the plane wreckage to Edmonton for further investigation.

Tony and Carol Alba are planning to go the Fort Smith in the coming days. Carol says she'd like to go to the wreckage site, if possible, or even get close to it and light a candle for Paszolo. She also wants to learn more about his life in the North, see the roads he drove, the gym he went to, and the bed where he slept.

A memorial for Paszolo at Tony and Carol's home in Edmonton. (CBC)

The last time she saw him, Paszolo gave her a big hug. It didn't strike her until later that it was the first time he had done that — normally, she had been the one to hug him.

"I don't know, it's a premonition or what. Because that's the last time I hug him," she said.

"I always hug him and always say that I love you so much, that he is my baby, [and he would] always say that, 'Oh Mom, I'm a grown up man!' But I told him like, yeah, you're a grown up but you're always gonna be a baby in my heart."

Tony said Paszolo will be loved and remembered by all of his friends and family.

'He will be in our heart,' said Tony. (CBC)

"He will be surely missed forever, but you know, he will be in our heart," Tony said.

"He's a good son, so I know he's listening. He's a good son," said Carol.

Tony said he's also thinking about the other families who are grieving loved ones killed in last week's crash.

"We will be joining together to stay strong, you know, with them," he said. "Because they also lost their dearly loved ones — and we are with them."