Club Statement: 25/02/19

The club acknowledges the publication today by the Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) of their special bulletin on the loss of the Piper Malibu aircraft carrying Emiliano Sala.
 
We have grave concerns that questions still remain over the validity of the pilot’s licence and rating to undertake such a journey, as identified in the bulletin.
 
We are also concerned to discover that the trip involved an aircraft which did not conform to either UK CAA or US FAA requirements for commercial activity and therefore may have been operating unlawfully.
 
We welcome further investigation into the accident, which is required to determine precisely what happened, and to ensure changes are made so that this situation never happens again.