Aviation
Private Cessna aircraft crashes off coast of Latvia
A Cessna 551 aircraft has crashed off the coast of Latvia under mysterious circumstances. The incident, which occurred on Sunday (September 4) saw the private plane crash into the Baltic Sea after an erratic flight traveling from Spain.
According to FlightRadar24, the Cessna 551 with an Austrian registration took off from Jerez in southern Spain at 12:56 GMT without having a predetermined destination.
Before traveling straight out over the Baltic and passing close to the Swedish island of Gotland, it made two turns at Paris and Cologne. The flight tracker indicated that it was quickly losing speed and altitude around 1737 GMT.
A representative for Sweden’s rescue service stated, “We have learned that the plane has crashed (in the ocean) northwest of the town of Ventspils in Latvia. It is no longer visible on the radar.
The aircraft had been sent earlier for inspection as it flew through the airspace of Germany and Denmark, but the war planes were unable to establish contact. They could not see anyone in the cockpit,” he said.
When it was learned that the plane had crashed, Lithuania dispatched an air force helicopter to the scene to search for survivors, and Latvia dispatched its navy. Veita confirmed that there was still no sign of the four people who had been onboard the private plane.
The Latvian Civil Aviation Authority stated in a statement that “the aircraft was traveling from Spain to Cologne, however the aircraft changed its flight path throughout the journey.”
He also added that the passengers on board were clearly disabled” and that there was “no explanation at all” for what had occurred. The position of the plane’s passengers is still unknown.
