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Search for missing aircraft underway in waters off Cape BretonPublished on August 6th, 2010
Published on August 6th, 2010
Staff ~ The Cape Breton Post SYDNEY — A small plane that left a Toronto-area airport with two people on board has disappeared over the ocean off the coast of Cape Breton.
Topics : Canadian Coast Guard , Cape Breton , Lingan Bay Aircraft and ships were scouring the waters north of Sydney on Friday for any sign of the Cessna 414 Alpha that dropped off radar screens around 11:30 p.m. Thursday.
Lt. Edward Stanfield of the search and rescue centre in Halifax said the twin-engine plane was en route from the Buttonville Airport to Sydney when it disappeared in bad weather.
Stanfield said the eight-seat plane was about 14 kilometres off the coast at the time.
“The weather conditions at the time were miserable,” he said in an interview. “They were very cloudy, very foggy. And that same weather has persisted throughout the morning (Friday) and has actually been frustrating some of the search attempts.”
There has been no sign of any wreckage.
Stanfield said the last information on the plane showed it deviating from its flight course.
“There was an erratic movement. It banked off, proceeded north, away from the (Sydney) airport, over water, and then descended below our radar line.”
A Cormorant helicopter from Gander, N.L., is searching the area, along with a coast guard auxiliary vessel, while more military aircraft are en route from Greenwood, N.S.
Visibility in the area was poor in low cloud and fog Thursday night and similar conditions hampered the search early today.
The weather is expected to improve as the day progresses.
Local fishing boats are also expected to join the search.
There was no word on the identities of those on board.
