YELLOWKNIFE - There is praise for emergency response teams and Canadian North crews after a nerve-wracking landing at Yellowknife airport Tuesday night.

Canadian North flight 478, en route to Cambridge Bay from Gjoa Haven, diverted to Yellowknife after experiencing problems with its nose gear. The Dash 8 aircraft with five passengers and three crew landed without its nose gear deployed, grinding to a halt in front a full regimen of emergency response teams.

"The pilot did an excellent job," said Yellowknife fire Chief Reid Douglas.

Canadian North flight 478 rests on the tarmac at Yellowknife airport nose-down after its nose landing gear failed to deploy en route from Gjoa Haven to Cambridge Bay. The plane was diverted to Yellowknife, where its five passengers and three crew members landed safely around 7 p.m. Tuesday night. Adam Johnson/NNSL photo

"It went very, very well," he said of the overall response to the incident. "As good as can be expected."

Kelly Kaylo, vice president of marketing and sales with Canadian North, said an indicator light, warning of landing gear problems, came on during the plane's descent into Cambridge Bay.

"The pilot elected to fly to Yellowknife," she said, due to the larger ground support available here.

After a short pass over the airport, where observers on the ground could see the nose landing gear was not deployed, the plane readied for its landing.

An airline professional at the scene, who would not give his name, said the procedure to land a plane in this situation was fairly standard.

"It's the same as any other (landing)," he said, except in this case, "You bring the nose down and scrape (the plane) to a halt."

"The plane landed on two main landing gear," Kaylo said. "Then the nose portion of the airplane was brought down in a straight line right in the middle of the runway."

After the the twin-engined turboprop aircraft came to a stop, crew and passengers got out through emergency exits. Firefighters hosed down the aircraft to cool off the road-rashed nose section. It all took just a matter of minutes.

"That was picture-perfect," one observer at the scene was heard to say.

"We're pretty proud of how the flight crew responded," said Kaylo. "They did everything in terms of securing the cabin and ensuring the safety of the passengers. That's first and foremost.

"They did a really good job."

She said the passengers were taken to a temporary care centre at the Yellowknife Fire Hall to check for injuries, calm nerves and organize accommodations. She said Canadian North's privacy policy prevented her from revealing the name of the passengers or the crew.

"They were fine," said Douglas. "It was a pretty traumatic incident to go through." Not quite a 'normal' landing

Regional airport manager Steve Loutitt said he was pleased with the response, agreeing that it was nearly "picture perfect."

"You certainly are ready for the worst-case scenarios," he said. "It's easier to stand down resources than to ramp them up."

Loutitt said he had observed a few landings of this kind, but emphasized they were not a regular occurrence.

"I wouldn't use the term 'normal situation'," he said, "but it does happen from time to time."

The flight was part of Canadian North's new Kitikmeot route, which began serving Cambridge Bay, Gjoa Haven, Kugluktuk, Toloyoak and Kugaaruk on Sunday.

Kaylo said the incident and temporary loss of one plane should not stall the new service.

"We have replacement aircraft that we will use to ensure that the schedule is running as planned," she said. "And we have options of charter aircraft from other providers."

The cause of the malfunction had not been determined at press time.