The light plane that was transporting the Argentine soccer player Emiliano Sala from France to Great Britain suffered his fatal accident for flying too fast for its characteristics and that it did not have the relevant license either, according to the researchers' report published this Friday.
The device fell into the sea in January 2019 causing the death of both the player, who was heading to Cardiff to sign for the Welsh club from Nantes, and the pilot David Ibbotson. The Air Accident Investigation Division (AAIB) noted in its findings that the pilot likely "lost control of the plane during a manual turn" while trying to get through a heavy storm.
"Subsequently, the aircraft suffered a rupture in mid-flight while maneuvering at an airspeed significantly higher than the maneuvering speed marked by its design," the authority said.
In this sense, the investigation considers that "a loss of control was more likely because the flight was not carried out in accordance with the safety regulations applicable to commercial operations." "This manifested itself when the flight was operated under the Visual Flight Rules (VFR) at night in adverse weather conditions despite the fact that the pilot had no training in night flight and a lack of recent practice in instrument flight," he warned.
Similarly, the pilot "was probably affected by carbon monoxide poisoning." "There was no CO detector with an active warning on the plane that could have alerted the pilot to the presence of CO in time for it to take mitigating measures," he said.
The AAIB described this accident as "tragic with fatal consequences" and also alluded to the absence of the proper license for the device, a Piper Malibu model. "Neither the pilot nor the aircraft had the necessary licenses or permits to operate commercially," the report said. "Chartering aircraft that are not licensed for commercial transportation, so-called 'gray charter', put lives at risk," said Crispin Orr, the division's chief inspector.
It also called for regulation to avoid the risk of carbon monoxide losses. "Equipping aircraft with devices that warn of the presence of this colorless, deadly, odorless gas would allow pilots to take life-saving measures. We therefore ask regulators to make piston-powered aircraft mandatory. Like the one involved in this accident, carry a device.
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