Buried Bones - a historical true crime podcast with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes · Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts

Northern Skies

September 3, 2025·1 hr 10 min·6 clips

Witnesses saw human limbs falling from the sky after a mysterious explosion brought down Flight 108.

This episode of Buried Bones examines the 1949 crash of Canadian Pacific Airlines Flight 108 near Quebec City. Hosts Kate Winkler Dawson, a true crime journalist, and Paul Holes, a retired cold case investigator, apply modern forensic perspectives to this historical disaster. The episode focuses on determining whether the crash was an accident or a deliberate act. The Douglas DC-3 aircraft, carrying 19 people, exploded shortly after takeoff from Quebec City, plummeting into a forested area. Investigators at the scene reported smelling dynamite and concluded the blast originated in the forward baggage compartment on the plane's left side. A key piece of evidence was a passenger seat found a quarter-mile from the crash site, indicating a mid-air explosion. The coroner's jury initially ruled the deaths accidental due to an "explosion of undetermined origin." Investigators discovered a suspicious 25-pound parcel in the cargo manifest, marked fragile, with sender and recipient tags bearing the names of two unrelated individuals. A baggage clerk described a woman in her 40s with dark brown hair delivering a package just before departure. The investigation shifted to the passengers, particularly 29-year-old Rita Guay. Attention turned to her husband, Albert Guay, who had recently been arrested for assaulting his 19-year-old mistress, Marie-Ange Robitaille. Albert Guay was a 31-year-old door-to-door jewelry salesman who had been in a tumultuous two-year affair with Robitaille since she was 17. The hosts explore the possibility that Guay orchestrated the crash to kill his wife, potentially for insurance money or to continue his affair unimpeded. Paul Holes notes the "massive disregard for human life" required to destroy an entire plane to target one person, suggesting a self-centered pathology. A surprising element is the potential involvement of the mysterious brown-haired woman who delivered the suspicious parcel, leaving investigators to determine if she was an accomplice or an unwitting participant. The hosts discuss the challenge of the crash scene, with Holes comparing the mangled wreckage to a complex fire scene requiring specialized experts to interpret. They also ponder whether a five-minute departure delay, which caused the plane to crash on land instead of in the St. Lawrence River, was a critical break for the investigation. The tone is conversational and educational, blending historical narrative with investigative analysis. The style involves the hosts exchanging expertise, with Dawson providing historical context and Holes offering insights from modern cold-case methodology. Listeners interested in aviation disasters, cold case investigations, and historical true crime with a forensic angle would enjoy this episode. Those sensitive to detailed discussions of plane crashes or who prefer exclusively solved mysteries might find it less appealing.

As heard by us

A plane explosion and the clues left behind.

A plane explosion sits at the center of the discussion, and the episode keeps circling back to the practical question of who could have brought the device aboard.

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Why you'd press play

Listen if you want a historical mystery built from evidence, with a shocking public murder at the center.

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