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Cardiff City Footballer Feared Missing after aircraft disappeared near Channel Island

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Cardiff City Footballer Feared Missing after aircraft disappeared near Channel Island

Old 23rd Jan 2019, 08:12
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zNewspapers are carrying details of one of the last messages from the passenger.

A transcript of the audio reads: "Hey brothers, how's everything going? Brother, I'm dead. I was in Nantes doing stuff, stuff, stuff and stuff... neverending, neverending, neverending, neverending. So anyway boys, I'm now on a plane which seems to be falling apart.

"And now I'm leaving for Cardiff, crazy that tomorrow I'll be training in the afternoon with my new teammates. We'll see what happens.

"So how are things with you brothers? All well?

"In an hour and a half if you haven't had news of me, I don't know if they'll send someone to look for me, because they're not going to find me. But, you know...

"Dad, I'm so scared."


Last edited by Mike Flynn; 23rd Jan 2019 at 08:28.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 08:21
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Originally Posted by Oldpilot55
DH is not the pilot missing in this accident.
Another case of unhelpful media then. They are taking a long time to reveal the identity of the individual while the passenger's name was revealed almost as soon as the PA46 was reported missing.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 08:21
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Originally Posted by Gurnard
"My Life as a Ferry Pilot" BBC News 12 October 2015. In it DH talks of the challenge and of a number of ferry pilots he knew who never made it. He stands alongside N264DB and demonstrates its instruments. Eerie indeed....
This seems the story

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/magazi...-a-ferry-pilot
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 08:34
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Originally Posted by sellbydate
Wrong - title is to Southern Aircraft Consultancy but actual ownership is an individual in Mansfield
I think ETOPS is correct. "Ownership" of the aircraft is listed on the title and shows on the FAA website, whether that's one individual or more, a corporate entity or in this case a trust, due I suspect to it being an N reg based in the UK. Whatever arrangement the trust has with the individual who is in possession of the plane is irrelevant to the FAA. Not all N reg in the UK are owned by a trust however, if you are a US citizen you can hold title in your own name without the need for a trust.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 08:40
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BBC reporting the football club are claiming the player booked the flight.

Cardiff City chairman Mehmet Dalman said players and fans were in a "state of shock".

"We are still praying," he said, adding that the club had received messages of support from around the world.

The "family of football has a way of coming together at times of tragedy," Mr Dalman told BBC Radio Wales' Good Morning Wales programme.

He also confirmed that the club had not booked the plane for the trip, adding that Sala had "made his own arrangements".
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-46966424
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 08:59
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Having been intimately involved with the signing of and life insurance exmainations for professional footballers for several years, I would be sadly surprised if all the insurance paperwork had gone through at this stage.

My experience is that this would be sorted once the player arrived for training.

Cardiff however could be much more "efficiently" run, and could possibly have some interim insurance to cover such eventualities.

My heartfelt sympathies to all involved.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 09:03
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So who is leading on the Accident Investigation on this - nothing from the AAIB.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 09:08
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BBC R4 news reporting that it's possible that the footballer and one other person might have climbed into a life-raft.

That's surely based on the Ferry Pilot clip where it's explained that on trans-Atlantic crossings there is a life-raft in the back to buy him up to 8hrs although he adds that he wears a neoprene immersion suit. But they wouldn't have been wearing neoprene on this occasion (would they?) so unless based on rescue services knowledge, the lift-raft possibility would be way off the mark, no?
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 09:21
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I have no reason to doubt the statement from the club but something doesn’t add up here
1) There are reports that his mother said the aircraft was arranged by the club
2) He doesn’t seem to be at all comfortable with light aircraft so was he someone who would lease a plane and then go out and hire himself a pilot
3) At the very least the club had knowledge of his travel plans and I would have thought would have taken a close interest in the safety of their very expensive “asset”
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 09:21
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It's a shame he didn't just book airline.

Most effectively AF/KLM through Amsterdam, as there is no reasonable connection at Paris. 1715 from Nantes arrive Ametsrdam 1900. 2120 from Amsterdam arrive Cardiff 2140. Seems little different to the light aircraft times.

Regarding the statement that the passenger had arranged the aircraft himself, I think we would be a bit surprised if he knew, personally, where to start with this. It will be notable to learn who/what else the owner had used this aircraft for over time.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 09:29
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Originally Posted by Chris Kebab
So who is leading on the Accident Investigation on this - nothing from the AAIB.
not under their jurisdiction I believe.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 09:41
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Icing sounds very likely, but what about the possible effect upon instruments if the passenger was not using his phone in "flight safe mode"? Evidently he was busy sending messages indicating that he was uneasy.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 09:56
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I have no reason to doubt the statement from the club but something doesn’t add up here
1) There are reports that his mother said the aircraft was arranged by the club
2) He doesn’t seem to be at all comfortable with light aircraft so was he someone who would lease a plane and then go out and hire himself a pilot
3) At the very least the club had knowledge of his travel plans and I would have thought would have taken a close interest in the safety of their very expensive “asset”
One person who hasn't been mentioned yet in all of this is his agent! I would have thought the chances he booked the flight are fairly high.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 10:04
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Originally Posted by ATC Watcher
To correct a few points : Guernsey is class D airspace at this altitude, so you need a transponder to enter, they normally do not give exceptions .. Any aircraft whatever its registration nationality that wants to fly in EASA airspace requires a mode S transponder . Mode A/C are no longer to be used,, In the USA you can still use the old A/C transponder but then you cannot enter, let alone be based in European airspace.
Is it 100% accurate? Last year I bought off the Jersey Aeroclub fleet, consisting of two fairly old, Mode C-only PA28s. Not only had they been operated daily in that Class D airspace chunk (mostly VFR) but when I ferried them out of Jersey, each time on an IFR flight plan, Mode C was never a problem.

Now, flying -DT through Belgium later was a completely different matter - I had to circumnavigate every bit of controlled airspace while there. I think it still varies by country, as I have recently flown -DT into and out of EPLL whose TMA is Class C.

Clear as mud.

Last edited by hegemon88; 23rd Jan 2019 at 10:04. Reason: Typo in the tag
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 10:23
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Originally Posted by Right Way Up
One person who hasn't been mentioned yet in all of this is his agent! I would have thought the chances he booked the flight are fairly high.
I know absolutely nothing about football but I do know that the agent is French. How would a football agent in France find an aircraft at Gamston then hire a pilot to fly it?
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 10:23
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I spent a few years flying VFR around the Channel Islands, the weather can change very quickly and there are some very strong sea currents around Alderney, so even if they got into a life raft they would still be in real trouble. How sad for all involved.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 10:46
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Whatever happened, I hope the pilot took the necessary precautions and did not treat it as a 'hop' over the channel.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 10:46
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sea is bitterly, bitterly cold this time of year. Terrible news.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 11:02
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How would a football agent in France find an aircraft at Gamston then hire a pilot to fly it?
Even taking that into account it is probably more plausible than either Cardiff or the player himself.
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Old 23rd Jan 2019, 11:05
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I hope the pilot took the necessary precautions and did not treat it as a 'hop' over the channel.
As an ex RAF sea survival instructor (at Sqn level) I have posted on this subject several times in the past.

The only real precaution you can take is to have two engines. If the single fan stops when you over open ocean (Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation applies) and even if you manage to carry out a decent ditching (or water landing as we seem to call it) you chances are slim unless:

1. You have all the necessary survival gear
AND 2. you have been trained too use it in realistic conditions (realistic conditions = in the sea, not in a swimming pool)

It is the bit in bold that most people just don't get. And when it comes to discussing this with armchair experts, especially pilots that expound a view without ever having done real training, I always say this. If you haven't been chucked into a cold, dark, stormy sea from height at at least 20 miles per hour, then listen and learn from those who have.

And for the record, I understand and agree with those who aware of this and are still happy to transit single engine over the ocean. Some folk weigh life experience versus risk and embrace it. I do so myself as most of my hill-walking is solo. IMHO the equation alters however, when you take responsibility for the welfare of one or more other human beings.

The vast majority of survivable ditchings feature most of the following criteria:

Daylight
Flat/calm water
very close to land or a surface vessel
warm or mild weather/water
good drills
good training
good kit

Fly safe all.
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