Status: 10/22/2022 4:34 p.m
A private plane with five German passengers is missing in Costa Rica. The machine disappeared from radar about 25 miles from the destination airport. During the search, debris was apparently discovered.
When searching for a missing private plane with five German passengers, emergency services apparently discovered several pieces of debris in the sea off the east coast of Costa Rica. About 28 kilometers from Limón airport, parts of a fuselage, seats and a bag were sighted during a reconnaissance flight, reported the television station Teletica, citing the country’s Ministry of Public Security. There was initially no information about the passengers.
The ministry had previously announced on Facebook that the plane was missing. The communication with the machine was broken around 6 p.m. local time – i.e. early Saturday morning at two a.m. German time. The plane was therefore on the way from Mexico to Puerto Limón. Investigations had been initiated together with neighboring countries, it said.
“The plane disappeared from radar about 25 miles from Limón airport,” Civil Aviation Authority director Fernando Naranjo told Teletica. “The plane was supposed to land at 6:58 p.m., we lost it at 2,000 feet.” Due to unfavorable weather conditions, the search work was temporarily suspended during the night. A command center was set up at Puerto Limón airport to coordinate the search work.
Embassy in contact with local authorities
The Foreign Office in Berlin said the case was known there. “Our embassy in San Jose is in contact with the local authorities to clarify the matter.”
According to media reports, the missing machine was a Piaggio P.180 Avanti business jet. She started in Palenque in the Mexican state of Chiapas in the afternoon.