Emiliano Sala missing aircraft: The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) has found two seat cushions on a French beach.
Two seat cushions have been found by The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB), which are likely a part of the debris belonging to the aircraft carrying Emiliano Sala and the pilot.
The aircraft lost contact at around 8:30 PM last Monday, and the French civil aviation authority confirmed that the Cardiff City footballer was onboard the plane.
An intensive rescue and recovery operation began on Tuesday but was called off two days later after Guernsey Police announced that the chances of survival were ‘remote.’
Emiliano Sala’s family later organized crowdfunding through a GoFundMe campaign and raised money for an underwater search. While the search is scheduled to begin on the weekend, the AAIB has now announced that a part of debris from the plane might have been found.
Air Accidents Investigation Branch says French counterparts found part of a seat cushion on beach nr Surainville on the Cotentin Peninsula. A 2nd cushion was found in the same area & they have concluded its “likely” they are from missing aircraft that carried Emiliano Sala.
— Dan Roan (@danroan) January 30, 2019
AAIB: “we have now identified a priority underwater search area of approximately 4 square nautical miles…to try to locate and identify possible aircraft wreckage.” Will start end of this weekend due to weather conditions
— Dan Roan (@danroan) January 30, 2019
In a statement, the AAIB said – “On the morning of Monday, January 28, we were advised by the Bureau d’Enquetes and d’Analyses, the French safety investigation authority, that part of a seat cushion had been found on a beach near Surtainville on the Cotentin Peninsula.
“A second cushion was found in the same area later that day.
“From a preliminary examination, we have concluded that it is likely that the cushions are from the missing aircraft.”
The cushions have been found on a beach in North-Eastern France. The location was about 40 miles (64 kms) away from the point where Sala’s aircraft lost signal.
The AAIB has further stated that an underwater search will be conducted on the weekend due to bad weather conditions at the moment.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch has identified an area in which to search for the plane carrying Emiliano Sala and David Ibbotson, after cushions were found on a beach.
More details
👉 https://t.co/5MulQkECPG pic.twitter.com/mukw2vIMz5— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) January 30, 2019
Update on search for Emiliano Sala’s plane:
> Britain’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch says 2 cushions likely to have come from plane found on beach in northern France
> Underwater search of seabed to start this weekend pic.twitter.com/x8TpKv8E8E— Rob Harris (@RobHarris) January 30, 2019
“We have now identified a priority underwater search area of approximately 4 square nautical miles…to try to locate and identify possible aircraft wreckage,” the AAIB said.
Earlier, Cardiff City played their first game since the incident took place and paid tribute to the footballer. Arsenal included Emiliano Sala’s name in Cardiff City’s away squad in their Matchday Programme.
Argentinian stars like Sergio Aguero and Lionel Messi have urged the Guernsey Police to resume search for the lost footballer.
