The Transportation Safety Board of Canada says weather conditions were poor when a plane crashed in northern Alberta last summer, killing the pilot.
A board report says RCMP found the pilot dead two days after the crash in the rugged terrain of Marten Mountain, about 10 kilometres northeast of Slave Lake.
The investigation found the pilot had told a flight service specialist in Edmonton on Aug. 31 that he was taking off from La Crete, Alta., for Saskatoon International Airport.
He was flying a privately registered Mooney M20C, which is a low-wing, single-engine plane, built in 1964.
The report says the pilot, who was the aircraft's sole occupant, called his family and said he would work his way around any thunderstorms, rain and misty conditions he might face.
A search after the plane's emergency transmitter activated was delayed, because the bad weather made it difficult to get into the densely treed area.