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 bulk of the plane was on the seabed and very few things were missing.” David Mearns, who led the privately-funded search for the plane that was carrying Emiliano Sala, explains how his team found and identified the wreckage pic.twitter.com/yEtnglCGlG
— ZooM Harare (@ZoomHarare) February 5, 2019
An image released Monday Feb. 4 by the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) showing the rear left side of the fuselage including part of the aircraft registration N264DB
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.
Cardiff City’s record signing
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.