No survivors are expected
following the crash of a Santa Barbara Airlines
ATR 42-300, the wreckage from which has been located after the aircraft vanished while operating between Merida and Caracas last night.
Search and rescue personnel on board helicopters located the wreck in the terrain of Los Conejos, some 6nm (11km) northwest of Merida’s Alberto Carnevalli Airport.
“By the nature of the impact it is presumed that there are no survivors,” says Venezuelan Instituto Nacional de Aeronautica Civil president Ramon Vinas.
The director of Venezuela’s emergency management agency, Proteccion Civil y Administracion de Desastres, Antonio Rivero has confirmed the location of the crash site.
Caracas lies on a flight path northeast of Merida; the wreckage is offset from this path by several miles. High terrain surrounds Merida Airport.
There were 43 passengers and three crew members on board the aircraft. It departed at 16:59 for Caracas, operating as flight 518. The aircraft, confirmed as being registered YV-1449, is a 22-year old example.