Body recovered from wreckage of footballer Sala's plane

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal and Hasan Esen</p> <p>LONDON (AA) – A body has been recovered from the wreckage of a plane that crashed in the English Channel last month while carrying Argentinian footballer Emiliano Sala and his pilot, British investigators said Wednesday.</p> <p>The aircraft was discovered on the seabed of the English Channel on Sunday, but efforts to remove the body had been hindered by tidal conditions. </p> <p>In a statement, the UK’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) said that “in challenging conditions”, the AAIB and its specialist contractors had successfully recovered the body, which had been seen amid the wreckage. </p> <p>The AAIB said the operation was carried out in “as dignified a way as possible” and the families were kept informed of the progress.</p> <p>&quot;The body is currently being taken to Portland to be passed into the care of the Dorset Coroner,” it said. </p> <p>The statement did say whether the body was that of Sala or pilot David Ibbotson, who were the only ones onboard the aircraft. </p> <p>&quot;Unfortunately, attempts to recover the aircraft wreckage were unsuccessful before poor weather conditions forced us to return the ROV to the ship,” it added, referring to a remotely operated vehicle.</p> <p>Sala was on his way to join his new club, Cardiff City FC, after signing a £15 million ($19.5 million) contract.</p> <p>The airplane was en route to Cardiff from Nantes, France before it disappeared from radar on Jan. 21 near the Channel Islands.