TP,
I'm not sure that I can agree with your comments.
It's pretty unusual, but not of course not unique, for a single to cross to Le Touquet with just one POB...
I would have thought it very likely that many many singles cross with one person on board every day. If I look at my local airport, and remove training flights from the picture, I suspect that the majority of aircraft take off with just one person on board. Le Touquet isn't a big flight for most of the South East. It's little more than a local flight.
It's pretty rare, but of course not unique, for a single to be lost on an England to France channel crossing...
Agreed. But not unique as you say. There are a few ditchings every year.
This incident occurred at almost exactly mid-channel..as far as possible vfrom available S&R facilities..
It's hardly far from S&R. Perhaps as far as is possible in the middle of the Channel, but certainly not far. If you were trying to be far from S&R there are a lot other places in the UK that you could go which would be further.
The Channel isn't that wide. You could glide to shore from a reasonable proporition of it.
Being mid channel could be relevant though because it would be the time that a pilot would be changing or preparing to change frequencies. If they were flying in instrument condition, low down, the distraction in checking and setting up the next frequency could be very relevant.
The facts don't look at all unusual to me. The only thing that raises any other thoughts would be the newspaper reports, but we've all learnt to be suspisious of news paper reports.
dp