Search was launched for an American pilot yesterday morning after his Cherokee Piper airplane disappeared from the radar 130 nautical miles southeast of Höfn. He is still missing. Only a few days ago, search was called off for a missing British pilot.
The Icelandic Coast Guard sent its airplane TF-SYN and helicopter TF-LIF to the scene, but the crew failed to spot the pilot or his airplane. Waves were seven to nine meters high and search conditions were difficult, Morgunbladid reports.
The pilot was the only person onboard and was on his way to Wick in Scotland. He was forced to land due to icing. The airplane had taken off from Reykjavík Domestic Airport at 9:20 am and disappeared from radars at 11:20 am.
At 11:56 am, a satellite received a signal from an emergency transmitter, considered a good sign. The pilot had managed to contact other pilots after his airplane disappeared from radars and they confirmed that he had been wearing a dry suit at the time of the accident.
This is the second airplane accident of this kind occurring in Icelandic waters in only ten days. On February 11, a small Cessna airplane made an emergency landing 50 nautical miles off Iceland’s southwestern corner. The search was called off after two days.
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