Historic Water Bomber Forced to Make Emergency Landing Near Victoria En Route to U.S.

A rare and historic Martin Mars water bomber, en route from British Columbia to a museum in Arizona, was forced to make an emergency landing near Victoria due to mechanical issues on Sunday afternoon.

The Philippine Mars — one of only two surviving aircraft of its kind — landed safely at the Victoria International Airport’s water aerodrome at Patricia Bay after experiencing problems with one of its four engines.

Emergency Landing

John Harper, a member of the Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue, witnessed the landing while on the water nearby. “There was a lot of excitement onboard our boat,” Harper said, describing the moment they realized the plane was making an emergency descent.

Harper noted that the aircraft landed at approximately 1:20 p.m. PT and spent about 40 minutes “doing circles” in the water before being moored. He added that only three of the plane's four engines appeared to be operational during its landing.

The Philippine Mars, owned by Port Alberni-based Coulson Aviation, had earlier departed for its final flight to the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson, Ariz. The journey included a planned stop in San Francisco to clear customs.

However, posts from aviation enthusiasts tracking the flight online showed the aircraft turning back near the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state before heading to Patricia Bay.

Historic Aircraft

The Philippine Mars is one of the last two Martin Mars flying boats built in the 1940s for the U.S. military. The aircraft were later converted into water bombers for firefighting purposes, becoming iconic symbols of aviation history.

The sister aircraft, the Hawaii Mars, was previously donated to the B.C. Aviation Museum in Sidney, near Victoria.

Coulson Aviation has not yet commented on the latest incident, but a statement earlier this month noted the Philippine Mars had previously aborted a departure due to a maintenance issue, returning to Sproat Lake in Port Alberni for repairs.

A Disrupted Farewell

For aviation enthusiasts, the plane’s forced return to B.C. marks a bittersweet moment. “It’s sad for me because it didn’t get where it’s going, and now it’s in a difficult situation,” Harper reflected.

The Philippine Mars had been eagerly awaited at the Pima Air and Space Museum, where it was set to join a collection of historic aircraft. For now, the future of the aircraft's final journey remains uncertain as engineers assess its mechanical issues.