Aviation

7.2, air crash investigation

Venezuela: Italian experts were sent to Venezuela to investigate the disappearance of an aircraft that crashed at sea in January with 14 people on board, including eight Italians. Experts from Italy’s navy, air force and civil protection office met investigators to analyze information gathered thus far on the Jan 4 crash. The body of the plane’s Venezuelan co-pilot washed up on the country’s Caribbean coast last month, along with a life jacket. Despite a search lasting weeks, rescuers found no other signs of victims or wreckage. The twin engine aircraft, operated by a small local carrier, went down during a flight from Caracas to Venezuela’s Los Roques Islands. The pilot radioed to controllers that he was having engine problems and would try to set the aircraft down near some coral reefs.