Debris washes ashore amid search for small plane carrying 6

John T. Fleming, chief executive of a Columbus-based beverage distribution company, was piloting the plane. His wife, Sue, their two teenage sons, Jack and Andrew, and two neighbours were also aboard.

The aircraft was headed to Ohio State University Airport, northwest of downtown Columbus. The plane suddenly lost altitude about 2 miles out during a scheduled return trip to Columbus, according to a flight-tracking service.

Fleming’s father has said the family and friends were attending a Cleveland Cavaliers basketball game.

The Coast Guard began searching the air after being notified soon after the plane’s disappearance. High waves and blustery conditions prevented smaller Coast Guard boats from the Cleveland area from deploying Thursday night. A 140-foot Coast Guard cutter joined a search that covered 128 square miles of the lake on Friday.

Weather and water conditions didn’t allow for recovery efforts to begin Saturday, but crews searched for the plane until darkness Sunday and planned to return Monday morning, weather permitting.

The Cleveland Division of Fire, the U.S. Coast Guard and Underwater Marine Contractors launched boats, and dive teams are ready to search the lake once the plane is located.

The mayor’s office says four boats are equipped with sonar that can track underwater images and are searching a grid near the plane’s last known location. A fifth boat is surveying the shoreline for debris that may have washed ashore.

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board continue to investigate.

The Associated Press

by Canadian Press

Debris washes ashore amid search for small plane carrying 6

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