Emiliano Sala's plane likely broke up in mid air, says crash expert

The plane carrying Cardiff City striker Emiliano Sala probably broke up in mid air before crashing into the sea off the Channel Islands, a former accident investigator said on Monday (February 25).

Britain's Air Accident Investigations Branch (AAIB) have issued an interim report on the crash, which killed Sala and pilot David Ibbotson in January. Sala's body was recovered from the plane's wreckage on the sea bed while Ibbotson's body has not been found.

Sala, 28, had been en route from Nantes in western France on Jan. 21 to make his debut for Premier League team Cardiff City when the plane disappeared near the Channel Islands.

Retired senior air crash investigator Steve Moss told the BBC the AAIB report showed the plane probably broke up before crashing heavily into the sea, inflicting further damage to the light aircraft.