Footballer’s pilot joked he was ‘rusty’
Plane believed to have iced over on Channel crossing as footballer told family in message he was ‘so scared’
The light aircraft carrying Emiliano Sala, the Cardiff City footballer, is thought to have crashed into the English Channel after its propeller became clogged with ice, as it emerged that the pilot had joked he was a “bit rusty” before take-off. Rescuers searching for the plane last night admitted they had given up hope. The Argentine striker sent a message to his famiy shortly before taking off on Monday, expressing fears over the state of the aircraft.
THE light aircraft carrying Emiliano Sala, the £15 million Cardiff City footballer, is thought to have crashed into the English Channel after its propeller became clogged with ice, as it emerged that the pilot had joked he was a “bit rusty” before taking off.
Rescuers searching for the plane last night admitted they had given up hope and said there was now no chance the men would be found alive.
The Argentinian-born striker sent a message to relatives shortly before taking off expressing fears over the state of the 25-year-old aircraft. Poor weather conditions had also forced Dave Ibbotson, 60, the pilot, to abort three attempted take-offs.
Earlier, Mr Ibbotson had joked on social media that he was a “bit rusty with the ils”, thought to mean the Instrument Landing System.
The Piper PA-46 Malibu left Nantes airport at around 7.15pm on Monday and was on route to Cardiff, where Sala was joining up with his new teammates.
Just after an hour, the pilot asked air traffic control to reduce altitude from 5,000ft to 2,300ft. It is thought he may have been trying to get to warmer air after the propeller or wings became iced up.
But a short time later, the Guernsey coastguard was alerted that the aircraft had disappeared from radar screens.
Last night aviation experts suggested the privately-chartered aircraft should not have been risking the flight in the icy conditions.
Alastair Rosenschein, a former pilot, said: “It’s already a fairly risky crossing to do in a single-engine aircraft, especially in winter and definitely at night. There are icing problems too.” Sources at Cardiff last night confirmed Sala had made flight arrangements with the help of Mark Mckay, an intermediary in the deal, because the club had only been able to secure him a route back to Cardiff via Paris and Heathrow.
Mr Mckay said in a statement: “I can confirm that when Emiliano made myself and his agent Meissa N’diaye aware that he wished to travel back to Nantes following his medical and signing on Friday, I began to look into arranging a private flight to take him to Nantes on Saturday morning. That evening, it was confirmed a plane was available to fly Emiliano on Saturday which could remain in Nantes until he was due to return to Cardiff on Tuesday. I have been in contact with officials from Cardiff City FC and the player’s agent over these difficult past few days and will continue to do so.” The aircraft, which was built in 1984, is registered in the United States rather than Britain through a company based in Norfolk. Southern Aircraft Consultancy charges owners around £500 per year to register their aircraft with the Federal Aviation Authority, which means it is harder for owners to be identified. Guernsey Police said the search was called off last night with police saying they would make a decision on resuming this morning. However, rescuers warned there was “no hope” of find- ing the pair. John Fitzgerald, chief officer of Channel Islands Air Search, said “even the most fit person” would only last a few hours in the water. Shortly before take off, Sala also sent a Whatsapp voice message to family saying he was “so scared”.