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00:00Above the English Channel, a Piper Malibu suddenly disappears from radar.
00:07Where did you go?
00:08November 264, Delta Bravo, do you read?
00:12Search teams find no trace of the plane or its high-profile passenger.
00:18Tonight, Emiliano Sala is missing.
00:21This began as a small general aviation accident, and it very quickly became of worldwide interest.
00:27As recovery crews search the sea, the pilot's background is investigated.
00:33He didn't have a full instrument rating.
00:35That rang alarm bells for me.
00:37But when they locate the plane, theories change.
00:41Look at the bending of the splice joint.
00:44The plane broke up before it hit the water.
00:47So now what we had to establish was, why did the aircraft break up in flight?
00:52A chartered Piper Malibu is moments from take-off.
01:20Pilot David Ibbotson prepares the plane for departure from Nantes Airport in France.
01:27November 264, Delta Bravo, ready for take-off.
01:31Ibbotson has a VIP on board.
01:35Argentinian footballer Emiliano Sala.
01:38The star striker is leaving Nantes for good.
01:59He's moving up to the Premier League to play for Cardiff City Football Club for 17 million euros.
02:06This was the move up to one of the world's richest leagues seen around the globe.
02:11It would have propelled him to absolute superstardom.
02:14It's a two-hour flight from Nantes to Cardiff, Wales, crossing over the English Channel.
02:26This is Emiliano Sala's second flight with Ibbotson.
02:30Two days earlier, he flew back from Cardiff, where he signed his new contract.
02:34Emiliano wanted to go back to Nantes to be able to say proper goodbyes to his teammates, to his friends.
02:41He'd left in the middle of the night and hadn't really told them that he would be signing for Cardiff City.
02:47November 264, Delta Bravo, requesting clearance to climb to flight level 55.
02:52November 264, Delta Bravo, you are cleared to flight level 55.
02:57The Piper Malibu can carry five passengers, but tonight Emiliano Sala is travelling alone.
03:05Are you warm enough?
03:08Sorry?
03:10Are you warm?
03:12I have cold.
03:17It's a comfortable aircraft.
03:19It will cruise at a reasonable speed.
03:21It's quite large, it's quite fast for a light aircraft.
03:24The plane climbs towards a cruising altitude of 5,500 feet.
03:30It would have been relatively easy to conduct this flight back from Nantes to Cardiff in clear weather.
03:37As they approach the Channel Islands, the weather changes.
03:43Rain clouds loom on the horizon.
03:47The pilot's visibility would have deteriorated as he approached the cloud conditions over the Channel Islands.
03:54November 264, Delta Bravo.
03:57With conditions worsening, David Ibbotson contacts air traffic control.
04:03Requesting clearance to descend to maintain VMC.
04:07November 264, Delta Bravo, you are cleared to flight level 50.
04:12Just advise if you need further descent.
04:15November 264, Delta Bravo.
04:16Thank you, sir.
04:19Ibbotson takes the Piper lower to avoid the bad weather.
04:23The cloud layers would have obscured what little light was available from the islands of Jersey and Guernsey.
04:29And the forward visibility would have been such that the horizon would have been indistinct and difficult to make out.
04:37Are you good back there?
04:46November 264, Delta Bravo.
04:49Requesting further descent to maintain VMC.
04:51But ten minutes later, Ibbotson still hasn't been able to clear the clouds.
04:57Clear to descend at your discretion.
05:01Roger.
05:06The Piper Malibu is one hour from Cardiff.
05:09But as the controller follows the plane's progress, it disappears from radar.
05:20November 264, Delta Bravo.
05:22How are you making out there?
05:24Where did you go?
05:28November 264, Delta Bravo.
05:31Do you read?
05:31Do you read?
05:31Yes, I've got a Piper Malibu missing from radar near the Channel Islands, north of Guernsey.
05:47Registration number is November 264, Delta Bravo.
05:53News of the missing Piper spreads quickly.
05:55Word starts to emerge that a Piper Malibu has gone down in the Channel.
06:03And fairly soon afterwards, sports journalists start saying,
06:07wasn't Emiliano Sala due to travel to Cardiff the same night?
06:11An air and sea search gets underway for a plane that disappeared over the English Channel.
06:17Search and rescue teams launch an expansive search of the Channel overnight and into the next morning.
06:23But the plane remains lost.
06:28Good morning.
06:30Hello.
06:31Meanwhile, a team from Britain's AAIB, or Air Accidents Investigation Branch, is assigned to the case.
06:40Radar data's come in. Check your inbox.
06:45Great, I'll bring it up.
06:47They wonder exactly where the Piper went down in the English Channel.
06:51We contacted ATC and we asked for the radar information.
06:56And we used that radar information.
06:58We were able to put together to provide a track of the aircraft.
07:03Looks like the last known radar hit is right here.
07:09So it should be close to here.
07:14Investigators begin to zero in on a search area north-northwest of the island of Guernsey.
07:21These are deep waters. It's too deep for divers.
07:26And strong currents.
07:28I'll get the coordinates to the marine team.
07:32When we first started looking at the radar information and trying to turn that into a location in the sea,
07:39our marine advisors looked at tides and that gave us a seabed location which we had reasonably good confidence in.
07:45While search and rescue teams begin more targeted efforts, the world gets the news everyone feared.
07:54Emiliano Sala was on board.
07:59French police confirmed to news outlets that Emiliano Sala was on the missing Piper Malibu.
08:05Given the temperature of the water and the weather conditions, it was very rough last night,
08:11their chances of survival are very, very slim.
08:15In Nunt, more affection for a much-loved player.
08:20We ask you to stand with us, to be united and to respect the family.
08:27They refuse to grieve and continue to believe.
08:33But that's great.
08:35Everything you can find.
08:38Okay. Thank you.
08:40I've got a team working on securing any mobile messages sent by the pilot or seller.
08:45Good idea.
08:47Okay.
08:48As the search continues, investigators look for any clues as to why the Piper Malibu went missing.
08:56You see, he deviates a bit to the right as he approaches Guernsey.
09:01But he's pretty much right back on course not long after.
09:05And the altitude holds steady at 5,000 feet during that time.
09:11Nothing too unusual.
09:12Right.
09:14But zoom in towards the end of the flight.
09:17Right.
09:17Check out those turns.
09:27They discover the plane made a wide turn to the right three minutes before it disappeared,
09:32followed by a hard left.
09:35Look at that final right turn.
09:41It's almost 180 degrees.
09:46The Piper then made a sharp right turn seconds before vanishing from radar.
09:52So we could see from the radar track that things began to go very strangely.
09:57There was a lot of turning, both left and right, and it culminated in a very sharp turn to the right.
10:02What would cause such erratic deviations ending in a steep dive?
10:07The behaviour that we were seeing, which was an increasing turn rate and an increasing rate of descent,
10:14looked like the beginning of a manoeuvre that we call a spiral dive.
10:18Look at the altitude fluctuations.
10:23Up and down and then a very rapid descent.
10:26For the final few moments of that flight, this is a plane that is ascending, that is descending,
10:34that is meandering, and ultimately this plane is going to end up in the sea.
10:40Did the plane suffer a loss of control before plunging into the English Channel?
10:48Even if we do find the plane, it's still going to prove to be quite challenging.
10:53There's no CVR or FDR on the Malibu.
10:59Not having a flight data recorder or a cockpit voice recorder
11:01makes it incredibly difficult to establish what happened in the last few minutes of that flight.
11:07After three days, the search for survivors is called off.
11:10The world mourns the loss of an up-and-coming footballer.
11:14Messages of condolence flood in from football clubs and players who pay tribute to Emiliano Sala.
11:23While families grieve, recovery teams deploy ships equipped with side-scan sonar,
11:29hunting for the Piper Malibu at the bottom of the English Channel.
11:32But finding the wreckage 22 miles off the coast of Guernsey is slow going.
11:38There were high tidal flows, and it was further complicated by the winter storms that were coming through.
11:44Pressure is on the AAIB to find the wreckage.
11:48This starts as a small story about a plane going missing,
11:52and then suddenly there is somebody famous on board,
11:56and the whole world wants to find out exactly what's happened here.
12:02So, this sector looks clear.
12:07OK, let's move on.
12:0913 days into the investigation, search teams continue to scour the bottom of the English Channel,
12:17looking for the missing Piper Malibu, its pilot, and its sole passenger, footballer Emiliano Sala.
12:24We knew it was going to be very difficult,
12:27and at that stage, we didn't expect to actually find it.
12:36Oh, hey, I've got something.
12:39You won't believe it.
12:40What is it?
12:42A message Sala left before takeoff.
12:43So, in the few moments before the plane took off,
13:04Emiliano Sala sent a voice note to his friends back home in Argentina.
13:09Investigators discover that Emiliano Sala raised concerns prior to takeoff.
13:33Was there some kind of mechanical problem with the plane?
13:37That's a good point.
13:39I'll check the maintenance history.
13:43We looked to see whether the aircraft was maintained properly,
13:45and whether there's any hint there that there could have been some form of mechanical failure.
13:51Last full check within November.
13:53So, two months before the flight?
13:56Well, it's only flown 11 hours since then.
14:00As far as general maintenance is concerned, the plane checks out.
14:03When we looked at those records, we found they were all in order,
14:07and it wasn't suggesting that there should have been any sort of mechanical failure.
14:12Go check it out. That looks promising.
14:15Fifteen days into the investigation, search teams make a critical discovery.
14:21I bet that's our plane.
14:24Finding the aircraft was a big breakthrough for the investigation.
14:28Thanks. No, that's great. Thanks for the update.
14:34Not only did they locate the plane, but they found one of the bodies.
14:41Emiliano Sala's body is found inside the plane.
14:45His remains are sent to a pathologist for analysis.
14:49The pilot's body isn't found.
14:51A.A.I.B. investigators turned their attention to video footage
14:56taken of the debris at the bottom of the English Channel.
15:01Reposit on the forward section of the fuselage.
15:07Was the plane out of control when it hit the water?
15:11Look at the damage to the roof.
15:12One of the most interesting things about the wreckage
15:16was that all the compression damage was on the top surfaces,
15:21not on the lower surfaces.
15:23So what this showed us was that the aircraft had hit the sea upside down.
15:27That is, in an inverted attitude.
15:30Let's check the tail for damage as well.
15:33I didn't see it in the earlier footage.
15:36Oh, it's missing.
15:47Hmm.
15:48They didn't find it.
15:50The outer section of the left wing is gone too.
15:53Actually, for both wings.
15:55We did try and find them.
15:57We had the Coast Guard was looking for them,
15:58and we were hoping that they might be washed up somewhere,
16:01but they never appeared.
16:03It's hard to know when these pieces separated.
16:06Did the tail and outer wings break off before or on impact?
16:12Look at the bending of the splice joint.
16:15Check out the direction of the bending.
16:19A close examination of the left wing provides a vital clue.
16:23We could see that the left wing failed
16:25as a result of the outer section being bent downwards.
16:31That can only mean one thing.
16:33The plane broke up before it hit the water.
16:36The finding that the left wing failed bending downwards was very significant.
16:44Because if the tail failed in flight,
16:46the aircraft nose would pitch down,
16:49causing the wing to fail bending downwards.
16:53Investigators conclude that the in-flight breakup began when the tail broke off,
16:58causing the wings to bend downwards, ripping off their outer portion before impact.
17:03So now what we had to establish was, why did the aircraft break up in flight?
17:09Let's try modelling the radar data.
17:11We used a software simulation where you enter the radar information that we had
17:20and it uses aircraft laws of motion to give us information about the airspeed,
17:26the angle of bank and the chi force on the aircraft.
17:30Using the plane's altitude and coordinates over time,
17:38investigators are able to plot the plane's manoeuvres.
17:41They examine the most mystifying manoeuvre, the final dive towards the water.
17:54The plane starts at 190 knots and continues speeding up to almost 280 knots.
18:02That's well beyond the structural limits of the plane.
18:06The team discovers that the excessive airspeed led to the aircraft's mid-flight breakup.
18:14Aircraft have maximum speeds beyond which you must not take them,
18:17because if you take them above those speeds,
18:19then you risk structural damage to the aircraft.
18:21And in this case, we saw the aircraft go way above those speeds.
18:26Why was the pilot flying so fast?
18:30Why does he make all those turns?
18:32My immediate thoughts on seeing that turn was it was extreme,
18:36and there was clearly something very wrong going on in the aircraft at the time.
18:42Investigators receive Emiliano Sala's toxicology report.
18:48Could the results shed any light on the mysterious crash of the Piper Malibu?
18:55When we receive the results of the post-mortem,
18:58we rely on the pathologist to indicate to us
19:00if there's anything that's abnormal.
19:03There's nothing unusual in Sol's toxicology.
19:06All right, then.
19:07Let's bring up the weather report.
19:10Right.
19:11The team turns to the weather data towards the end of the flight
19:15in hopes of explaining why the Piper Malibu lost control.
19:19That doesn't look good.
19:22Rain.
19:24Lots of it.
19:25Hmm.
19:27It looks like he's turning as he's approaching those cells.
19:32Maybe he's trying to fly around the clouds.
19:36When you're flying at night with very little light,
19:39there are lots of ways in which your body can become confused about where you are.
19:44In space, are you climbing or descending?
19:46Are you turning left or right?
19:47And that can quite easily lead to a loss of control.
19:49So, tell me about the flight.
19:54Investigators speak with the air traffic controller.
19:58Everything seemed totally normal.
20:01Then he just disappeared off the radar.
20:05And before you lost him, did you hear anything unusual?
20:11Not really.
20:12He did ask to descend twice to stay in visual conditions.
20:19November 264, Delta Bravo.
20:22Requesting further descent to maintain VMC.
20:25Cleared to descend at your discretion.
20:28Roger.
20:29Not only was the pilot trying to fly around the clouds,
20:33he was trying to descend below them for better visibility.
20:36You know, here's what I don't get.
20:43The pilot has instruments to help him fly through poor visibility.
20:47Well, he's clearly not using them.
20:51Perhaps he doesn't know how to use them.
20:57What do we have on this pilot?
21:01Let's figure out exactly who's flying this plane.
21:06We had a pilot that had manoeuvred, we think, to avoid weather,
21:10but appears to have lost control.
21:12So, that raised a question about why did that happen?
21:16Thank you.
21:19And here it is, his current private license.
21:23It has all his ratings.
21:25Did the pilot have the required experience
21:27to fly the plane in bad weather?
21:31The family were able to share his laptop with us,
21:33and on there was a photograph he'd taken of his license.
21:38He didn't have a full instrument rating.
21:42He also had what's called an instrument rating restricted.
21:44So, that's a limited instrument rating
21:47that allowed him to operate in some conditions
21:49in instrument flight rules.
21:52Plus, he hasn't flown using his instruments
21:55in almost two years.
21:59We haven't had any recent practice
22:01in flying the aircraft in cloud or on instruments,
22:06and instrument flying is a perishable skill.
22:08You forget it quite quickly.
22:09Oh, no, that's not the worst part.
22:14The flight plan he filed for had a nighttime departure.
22:17He doesn't have a night rating.
22:21From our evidence of Mr. Ibbotson's recent flying,
22:23it was all done in daytime in good weather.
22:28Investigators conclude that Ibbotson's licensing
22:31was inadequate for a night flight in instrument conditions.
22:35Oh, there's something more.
22:42Every turn we took seemed to open a lot more cans of worms
22:45that we needed to investigate.
22:47Check this out.
22:50It's a summary of Ibbotson's projected expenses.
22:54Exactly.
22:56Look here.
22:58Pilot fee.
22:59That rang alarm bells for me
23:03because this guy is only a private pilot's license holder.
23:07He's not entitled to be paid.
23:09November 264 Delta Bravo, ready for takeoff.
23:13He didn't have a night rating,
23:15and he didn't have a commercial pilot's license.
23:19Essentially means that this pilot
23:20should not have been operating this flight.
23:25So...
23:26Who paid him?
23:27Who contracted an inadequately licensed pilot
23:33to fly Emiliano Sala to Cardiff?
23:38Getting to the bottom of who organized this flight
23:40was very difficult.
23:42There was no contract.
23:44There were no receipts.
23:46There was no agreements.
23:47This was all done by word of mouth or telephone.
23:51It's a wall of silence.
23:53They get very little information
23:57about the flight from the owner
23:58of the Piper Malibu.
24:00Oh, I've got a tip.
24:02Hmm?
24:03Someone wants to talk.
24:06Discreetly.
24:09Let's talk to them.
24:12Is this the break investigators need?
24:15David Henderson arranged the flight.
24:21He works for the owner.
24:24Investigators meet with a witness
24:25who has more information
24:27about Emiliano Sala's flight
24:29over the English Channel.
24:30The witnesses that came forward
24:36wanted to give us information
24:37but didn't want to be identified.
24:40The informant provides insight
24:43into the accident aircraft
24:44and its operator.
24:50So, Henderson hired the pilot?
24:53That's right.
24:54Mr Henderson, how are you?
25:05David Ibbotson was one of them.
25:08Henderson asked Ibbotson
25:09if he could fly a passenger
25:10from Cardiff to Nantes and back again.
25:13I think I can do that.
25:17Mr Ibbotson would have known
25:19that he had no night rating
25:21and he would have known
25:22as a private pilot's license holder
25:24that he was not entitled
25:25to be paid for the flight.
25:28What is the departure time from Nantes?
25:32Investigators uncover more
25:33about the flight's schedule.
25:35So, the original plan for the flight
25:37was for Mr Sala
25:38to fly back on Monday morning.
25:41Circumstances changed.
25:43The flight to Cardiff
25:44kept getting delayed.
25:51Mr Henderson in Ibbotson again.
25:56There were numerous changes
25:57to the departure time
25:58over the weekend.
26:00Uh, sorry to say
26:01we have a further delay.
26:03That was pushed back
26:03at the request of the passenger.
26:05So, he was supposed to be flying
26:07in conditions with good visibility
26:09during the day,
26:11but that changed.
26:12And he doesn't have
26:13his night rating.
26:16Have you seen anything
26:17like this before?
26:19This is a first.
26:21What we started to see
26:22a picture of
26:23was an operation
26:25in the shadows.
26:28It was unlicensed.
26:30It had no approval
26:31to do commercial work.
26:33They were using
26:34an unqualified pilot.
26:36We have to figure this out.
26:38Work your contacts.
26:40Let's see what we can find.
26:44Are chartered flights
26:45with unlicensed pilots common?
26:49It was very challenging
26:50to assess the extent
26:52that this was going on.
26:54There's no records kept.
26:55There's no flight plans made.
26:57And witnesses are
26:58understandably reluctant
26:59to talk about it.
27:02Investigators learn
27:02about flights
27:03that aren't properly licensed,
27:05called grey charters.
27:07They offer a discounted price,
27:09which comes with increased risk.
27:11The problem with grey charters
27:14is that the aircraft
27:15that are being used
27:16to operate them
27:16are often not maintained
27:18to the same safety standard
27:19as commercial airliners.
27:22Witnesses came to us
27:23to talk about
27:24the prevalence of grey charters.
27:26We could see a pattern
27:27emerging of how common
27:28this was
27:29in aviation in the UK.
27:31Four months after the crash
27:33of the Piper Malibu,
27:35investigators are close
27:36to releasing a final report
27:38when the case
27:40takes an unexpected turn.
27:44Oh, it's from the pathologist.
27:47He did some additional testing
27:49on Salah's blood work.
27:53He just sent me the analysis.
27:55Salah had carbon monoxide
28:04in his system.
28:05The pathologist had ordered
28:06toxicology tests,
28:08but that had not included
28:09carbon monoxide.
28:11And when he realised
28:12he'd missed that,
28:13he put in a request
28:14for just the carbon monoxide
28:15to be tested.
28:17This had really been a story
28:19about a pilot flying
28:21outside of his competency
28:22in weather
28:23that he'd neither practised
28:25nor prepared for.
28:27And it was all down to him.
28:30The onus was being put on him.
28:33And then suddenly
28:33we get this finding
28:34of carbon monoxide
28:36and that really made
28:38everyone think again.
28:40Salah's carbon monoxide levels
28:42were at 58%.
28:43Toxicology testing
28:45reveals that footballer
28:47Emiliano Salah
28:48had high levels
28:49of carbon monoxide
28:50in his system.
28:52I was shocked
28:53by the level
28:54of carbon monoxide
28:55that was in his blood.
28:56What would that have done
28:58to him?
29:07Carbon monoxide
29:08over 50%.
29:10Unconsciousness
29:13and eventual death.
29:15Carbon monoxide is a colourless,
29:33odourless, flavourless gas.
29:37You don't know it's there.
29:38You don't know you're breathing it in.
29:40And yet it's so dangerous
29:41and it can kill you quickly.
29:43Even low levels
29:45of carbon monoxide
29:46are dangerous.
29:48Are you good back there?
29:50The first thing that happens
29:51is you get a headache.
29:52You might feel confused,
29:53drowsy.
29:54You start not being able
29:55to do tasks
29:56that you would normally
29:57find easy.
29:59The question is,
30:00did Salah's carbon monoxide poisoning
30:02come from the plane
30:03or somewhere else?
30:07Rise.
30:07Did Emiliano Salah
30:10show signs
30:11of carbon monoxide poisoning
30:13prior to his flight
30:14on the Piper Malibu?
30:17The AAIB
30:18seeks help
30:19from French investigators.
30:22We had our colleagues
30:23in France
30:24talk to people
30:25at Nantes Airport
30:27to see what the behaviour
30:29of the pilot
30:30and the passenger
30:30had been
30:31as they were going
30:32through the airport
30:33on the way
30:34to the aeroplane.
30:34Well, how did
30:37the passenger seem?
30:40Officials at Nantes Airport
30:41scrutinised
30:42security footage
30:43of Salah
30:44to see if there was
30:45anything abnormal
30:46about his actions.
30:52What about the pilot?
30:56Okay.
30:57No, that's great.
30:59Thanks.
31:02Negative.
31:02Salah seemed fine.
31:06The pilot was alert.
31:07He wasn't swaying.
31:10That means the carbon monoxide
31:12poisoning was from the plane.
31:15David Ibbotson's body
31:16was never recovered
31:17from the English Channel.
31:18His carbon monoxide levels
31:20couldn't be determined.
31:24You know,
31:25maybe the modelling data
31:28will shed some light.
31:30Investigators returned
31:34to the flight path data
31:35for further insight.
31:37Was the pilot affected
31:38by the poisonous gas?
31:41Straight,
31:43level,
31:44looks like
31:46it's on autopilot.
31:49It's hard to know
31:50if he was conscious or not.
31:53Next, the plane
31:54turns right
31:55and then turns left.
31:57look at these bank angles.
32:0036 degrees to the right
32:02and then 56 degrees
32:04to the left.
32:06Those angles are
32:07well beyond the limits
32:09of the autopilot.
32:13Investigators discover
32:14that the pilot
32:15was conscious enough
32:16to be turning the plane
32:17in the final stage of flight.
32:19But was he conscious
32:20during the last minute
32:22of flight?
32:23Then, here,
32:24the plane is in its dive
32:26with its right wing
32:28pointed right down
32:29straight at the water.
32:31It's hard to believe
32:31he was fully conscious
32:32for that.
32:33Yes.
32:36Oh,
32:38now check this out.
32:39Before the plane broke up,
32:41the wings
32:42almost level out.
32:43either the pilot
32:45could have
32:46applied pressure
32:47on the control column,
32:48for example,
32:48by slumping over it,
32:50and that could have
32:51caused the wings
32:51to roll level.
32:53Check out the pitch.
32:56There's a slight increase.
32:59In the final moments,
33:01the pitch
33:02of the Piper Malibu
33:03starts to rise.
33:04It's evidence
33:05that the pilot
33:06must have been
33:07partly conscious.
33:08But for the aircraft
33:10to start to pitch up,
33:12the pilot
33:12would have to be
33:13conscious enough
33:14to pull the control
33:15column rearward.
33:17His carbon monoxide
33:18levels had to be
33:19lower than the passengers.
33:21He may have been
33:22conscious,
33:23but he still could have
33:24been badly impaired.
33:26May have been
33:26slipping in and out
33:27of consciousness
33:28and may have made
33:29a token effort
33:30to recover the aircraft
33:31from the steep
33:32descending turn.
33:34Without Mr.
33:35Ibbotson's body,
33:36it's impossible to know
33:38how much he was
33:39affected by carbon
33:40monoxide.
33:42But we know
33:43they were sitting
33:43in the same
33:43combined cabin.
33:45OK.
33:46We need
33:47everything there is
33:48on the Piper Malibu
33:50exhaust and
33:51ventilation system.
33:52And the carbon monoxide
33:54is carried
33:55by the exhaust gases
33:56which are generated
33:57by the engine.
33:58We need to understand
33:58how do those exhaust gases
34:00get into the cabin.
34:02Are you warm?
34:04I'm going for you.
34:05I've pulled the schematics.
34:13Great.
34:14Investigators study
34:16the exhaust and
34:17ventilation systems
34:18of the Piper Malibu
34:19to determine how
34:20carbon monoxide
34:21could have entered
34:22the cabin.
34:23Maybe there was
34:27an exhaust leak
34:28that seeped
34:30through the firewall
34:32and the pressure
34:34bulkhead.
34:37Maybe,
34:38but only if there
34:39was a crack
34:40or a leak.
34:43Piston engines
34:44produce high concentrations
34:46of carbon monoxide
34:47that can potentially
34:48enter the cabin
34:49as a result of cracks,
34:51holes or poorly-footed
34:52components
34:53in the exhaust system.
34:56The team
34:56did a lot of work
34:58on potential sources
35:01for the carbon monoxide
35:02in the cabin.
35:03And we talked
35:04to the manufacturer
35:05and we talked
35:05to the engine manufacturer.
35:08Seals in the firewall
35:09and the forward pressure
35:11bulkhead
35:11form an airtight barrier
35:13preventing engine fumes
35:15from entering the cabin.
35:17Here's the thing.
35:19Maintenance inspected
35:20the firewall
35:21and the pressure
35:22bulkhead
35:23two months ago.
35:24There's no signs
35:25of cracking
35:25or broken seals.
35:29During the last
35:30maintenance inspections,
35:32the engineers
35:33found nothing wrong
35:34with the firewall
35:35or the pressure
35:36bulkhead.
35:37Investigators consider
35:38a different possibility.
35:40What if
35:41there was
35:43a puncture
35:44in the exhaust piping?
35:47Did a breach
35:49in the exhaust system
35:51allow poisonous fumes
35:53to mix with the fresh air
35:54used to ventilate the cabin?
35:57As fresh air
35:58enters the aircraft,
36:00it's warmed
36:00by the engine's exhaust pipe
36:02inside a chamber
36:03called the heater muff
36:05before circulating
36:06into the cabin.
36:07What if
36:11the puncture
36:11happened
36:12after
36:13the last
36:14inspection?
36:15Let's check
36:16the logbooks.
36:18They look
36:19for any history
36:19of an issue
36:20near the tailpipe.
36:21No, nothing here.
36:26What about
36:26on the flight
36:29over to Nantes?
36:31That's a good point.
36:34Maybe something
36:34happened there.
36:36On the way to Nantes,
36:38Mr. Ibbotson
36:38did encounter
36:39a number of problems
36:40with the aircraft
36:40that he reported
36:41to various parties.
36:44Thank you.
36:47Sounds like
36:48there were some issues
36:48on the flight
36:49on the way over
36:49from Cardiff.
36:50Like what?
36:51Oh, there was
36:52a small oil leak
36:54and during the landing
36:57his brakes
36:57gave him problems.
36:59Both were checked
36:59and they weren't
37:01a safety concern.
37:02Okay.
37:04This one
37:04is more troublesome.
37:06He reported
37:06a bang
37:07mid-flight.
37:09A cabin
37:10filled with mist.
37:12Two days
37:13before the fatal flight,
37:15Ibbotson piloted
37:16Emiliano Sala
37:17from Cardiff
37:18to Nantes
37:19to pick up
37:19his belongings
37:20and say his goodbye.
37:21What the?
37:30He's okay?
37:32Oh, yeah, yeah,
37:34it's okay.
37:37The plane is
37:38mid-channel.
37:40He talks about a bang,
37:41something that really
37:42kind of grabbed
37:43his attention.
37:44He checks
37:45to see
37:46if everything
37:46is working
37:47as it should do,
37:48plane keeps flying,
37:49but in the back
37:50of his mind
37:51is what on earth
37:52was that?
37:54Navy,
37:55the turbocharger
37:56failed on the way
37:57over to Nantes
37:58and punctured
37:59the tailpipe.
38:00did a turbine
38:05inside an engine
38:06turbocharger
38:07break,
38:08puncturing the
38:09exhaust pipe,
38:10allowing poisonous
38:11gas into the cabin?
38:12If you do have damage
38:16to the tailpipe,
38:17then there is a possibility
38:19that exhaust fumes
38:20and the carbon monoxide
38:22can flow into the fresh air
38:24and into the cabin.
38:26Interesting theory.
38:28I've got an idea.
38:31Investigators check
38:32with the National Transportation
38:33Safety Board
38:34in the United States
38:36where the Piper Malibu
38:37is manufactured.
38:39Oh, really?
38:42No, that's fine.
38:44Thanks so much.
38:46We became aware
38:47that the NTSB
38:48were investigating events
38:49where a turbine wheel
38:50and a turbocharger
38:51came away.
38:53Kirk,
38:54it's happened twice before.
38:59Could an engine component
39:01on the Piper Malibu
39:02have come apart
39:03and punctured
39:04the exhaust system,
39:06releasing toxic fumes
39:07into the cabin?
39:08We don't know
39:09what the cause
39:10of the bang was
39:11on the outbound flight
39:12from Cardiff to Nantes
39:13and we may never know.
39:14Investigators learn
39:15of two similar cases
39:17in the United States.
39:19Both cases,
39:21the pieces of the turbocharger
39:23were only left
39:24score marks.
39:26Tailpipes were never punctured.
39:30We considered it unlikely
39:31that a failure
39:32of the turbocharger
39:33would have allowed
39:35carbon monoxide
39:36to enter the cabin.
39:39Well, what if the tailpipe
39:40cracked on its own?
39:42But it is a pretty harsh environment
39:45inside the engine.
39:46Exactly.
39:47Heat, vibration,
39:48prime conditions
39:49for a crack to develop.
39:51Hmm.
39:52Do you look at all the separate components
39:56in there for signs of failure
39:57or wear, etc.,
39:59and where necessary
40:01you'll replace components?
40:03A visual inspection
40:04of the tailpipe
40:04is part of their maintenance check.
40:07And the plane
40:08only flew for 11 hours
40:10after its last inspection.
40:13Maintenance found nothing wrong
40:14with the tailpipe
40:15or the exhaust system.
40:16Not a lot of time
40:17for a crack to develop.
40:19Is it even possible?
40:25They study other accidents
40:27for instances
40:28of cracked tailpipes.
40:33Oh, look at this one.
40:35Investigators find
40:36a disturbing case
40:37of carbon monoxide
40:39leaking into the cabin
40:40of a small plane.
40:42A crack in the exhaust
40:43formed just six flying hours
40:44after a maintenance inspection.
40:47Even if the mechanics
40:48had carried out
40:49the inspection,
40:50a crack may have developed
40:51sufficient to cause
40:53carbon monoxide
40:54to leak into the cabin
40:55during those 11 flying hours.
40:58They conclude
40:59that a sudden crack
41:00in the tailpipe
41:01was the likeliest reason
41:03carbon monoxide
41:04leaked into the cabin.
41:07The maintenance inspection
41:08they did on the paper
41:09was a visual one.
41:12Is a visual inspection
41:14the safest way
41:15to identify early signs
41:17of cracking
41:17in a tailpipe?
41:24According to the engine manufacturer,
41:28the best way
41:29to test for small cracks
41:31is a pressure test.
41:33To inspect the tailpipe,
41:35a soapy solution
41:36is applied to the exterior.
41:38If bubbles form,
41:40that means there's a crack.
41:41Is it a requirement
41:43for a private operator?
41:50The FAA
41:51doesn't mandate it.
41:53What about a commercial one?
41:58Looks like
41:59a pressure test
42:00is required
42:01for commercial operators.
42:05Had the aircraft
42:06been maintained
42:06under regulations
42:08for commercial use,
42:10which was the way
42:10it was actually being used,
42:12it would have meant
42:13that during the maintenance
42:14there was definitely
42:16a documented pressure test
42:19of the exhaust system.
42:20If this had been
42:22a very small crack
42:24that was missed
42:25by a visual inspection,
42:28maintenance may have caught it.
42:30The AAIB releases
42:38its report on the crash.
42:40It concludes
42:41the pilot lost control
42:43while turning the aircraft
42:44to regain visibility,
42:46which resulted
42:47in an in-flight breakup.
42:49Among the causes,
42:50it points to a leak
42:51of carbon monoxide
42:52into the cabin.
42:54It also cites
42:55a lack of safety standards
42:56from the operator
42:57of the Piper Malibu
42:59as a contributing factor.
43:02As a result
43:03of the AAIB's investigation,
43:06the Civil Aviation Authority
43:08launches a campaign
43:09to raise awareness
43:10of the dangers
43:11of grey charters.
43:14David Henderson
43:14is ultimately jailed
43:16for his role
43:17in the accident.
43:19This was a real moment
43:20for the industry
43:21to take a good,
43:22hard look at itself,
43:23to use that
43:23as an opportunity
43:24to try to change things,
43:26to try to make sure
43:27that something like this
43:28didn't happen again.
43:30There were a lot
43:31of sporting organisations
43:32for which grey charter
43:34might have been part
43:36of the culture
43:37of those organisations.
43:39And I think this accident
43:40made them sit up
43:41and take notice
43:41about the risks
43:42that their members
43:43were taking.
43:45It was a risk
43:47that ultimately
43:47took the life
43:48of Emiliano Sala,
43:50a rising football star,
43:52on the day
43:53he said goodbye
43:54to his teammates
43:55in Nantes
43:55and flew towards
43:57his new future.
43:58I think this is a good thing
43:59for the future
44:00of the future.
44:00of the future.
44:01Obrigado.