Emiliano Sala: Body seen in wreckage in search for footballer
A body has been seen in the wreckage of the plane which was carrying missing footballer Emiliano Sala, the UK’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) has said.
The AAIB said it was considering its next steps in consultation with the police and families of Sala and the pilot David Ibbotson.
Underwater searches using specialist vessels uncovered an “object of interest” on the seabed on February 3, according to the investigators.
A remotely operated vehicle surveyed the area and, based on analysis of the video footage, investigators concluded that the object was wreckage from the missing Piper Malibu aircraft.
In a statement issued on Monday, the AAIB said: “The remotely operated vehicle (ROV) carried out a further search of the area overnight, but did not identify any additional pieces of wreckage.
“Tragically, in video footage from the ROV one occupant is visible amidst the wreckage.”
The AAIB added that the image showed the rear left side of the fuselage — the main body of the aircraft — and part of the registration.
“We intend to publish an interim report within one month of the accident occurring,” it said.
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Sala, 28, and the 59-year-old Ibbotson were flying in the single-turbine aircraft from Nantes, in northern France, to Cardiff in Wales, when it disappeared from radar near the Channel Islands on January 21.
The Argentine striker had recently signed with English Premier League club Cardiff City for a reported £15 million ($19.3 million) from French club Nantes and was heading to the Welsh capital after saying farewell to his former teammates in France.
Wreckage from the plane thought to be carrying the footballer was found Sunday by a privately funded search team working in close coordination with the AAIB.
On Sunday, the AAIB had also begun a three-day underwater search of an area four square nautical miles off the island of Guernsey.
David Mearns, a marine scientist leading the private search team hired by Sala’s family, said the wreckage of the plane had been located by sonar equipment at a depth of about 63 meters within the first couple of hours of starting Sunday’s search. Experts on the larger vessel — Geo Ocean III — used by the air investigators confirmed it was the missing Piper Malibu aircraft.
Speaking on BBC’s Today show, Mearns said the wreckage was surprisingly intact and added that the family would “desperately” like the plane to be recovered.
“The next step is down to the the AAIB,” he said Monday, before air investigators had released their statement.
“They had contracted the vessel they are using, the Geo III, for three days. They wouldn’t be able to recover it in that period of time but that’s probably what they’re evaluating.
“If they can dive today [Monday], the weather’s not great today, then hopefully they’ll get some more information about how they would attempt that recovery.”
