Will the search for footballer Emiliano Sala and his driver continue? The decision must be made Thursday morning. But more than 48 hours after the tragedy, no trace of the aircraft nor of the two men off the island of Guernsey has been spotted. The investigation continues to determine causes and responsibilities. The hypotheses about the accident remain numerous, while the attitude of the pilot raises questions.
Who was the pilot of the plane?
The vagueness has reigned over the identity of the pilot, since the disappearance of the plane carrying Emiliano Sala, Monday night. On Tuesday, several sources told L'Équipe that the pilot was Dave Henderson. The newspaper said the latter, alerted to the disappearance of the aircraft late Monday night, said on Facebook that he was "well alive" before deleting his account. On Wednesday evening, the English authorities confirmed that the man who was flying the plane was actually David Andrew Ibbotson, after the revelations of the Grimsby Telegraph .
Did he have the skills to fly?
According to several British media, David Andrew Ibbotson would be "engineer in gas" and "DJ" for weddings. "I'm a bit rusty with the landing system," he told a friend, on Facebook, two days before the tragedy, in response to a geolocation shared at the Nantes airport. Words that are cold in the back and question his real skills in flying.
The pilot's FB exchange of #sala seems to indicate that he was a little "rusty" (rusty) with the aircraft's ILS (landing gear) # PrayForSala # FCNantespic.twitter.com / FEasSe9tlM
- Media Industry 35 (@VeilleIndus) January 23, 2019His choices during the flight question. Why did you ask to go down? Before the loss of the signal, the single-engine propeller was flying 700 meters above the sea. "In case of engine failure, it does not forgive," says a professional driver interviewed by Europe 1.
Another hypothesis: he would have decided to fly lower to pass under the thick layer of clouds present Monday night. Either prefer to fly on sight rather than using the instruments. A choice not recommended in these circumstances, because without specific training, the life of a pilot in the clouds is a few minutes.
Were the weather conditions good enough?
Flying a January night is also facing the risk of icing, on the wings of the aircraft or its gasoline arrivals. A level of risk too important for another pilot that we interviewed: "I will not go there". At the same time, professional pilots are under pressure from their customers to reach their destination.