A “fatal accident” involving a small passenger plane occurred Tuesday, August 15 in Lavau-sur-Loire (Loire-Atlantique), announced Tuesday on X (ex-Twitter) the Bureau of Investigations and Analysis (BEA) for the safety of civil aviation.
Three people were on board the aircraft which disappeared at the beginning of the afternoon between Nantes and La Baule, according to a press release from the Loire-Atlantique prefecture which had announced a little earlier the triggering of a plan of rescue. According to sources familiar with the matter at Agence France-Presse (AFP), journalist Gérard Leclerc was on board. Underwater research has been suspended for the night, these sources told AFP.
The aircraft left Loudun aerodrome in Vienne, around 10:30 a.m. Around 12 p.m., it gave no more signs of life, according to information from the newspaper Le Télégramme. “At 2:10 p.m. the aeronautical emergency center informed the prefecture of the disappearance of an aircraft between Nantes and La Baule”, reports the prefect of Loire-Atlantique in a press release.
In the aftermath, the air-land rescue plan (Sater) was triggered, the firefighters were mobilized as well as the departmental association of radio amateurs in the service of civil security. (ADRASEC). “Further investigations are underway,” says the prefecture.
The president of the flying club, Michel Richez, interviewed by the media Le Télégramme, claims to have seen the journalist Gérard Leclerc, columnist on the set of CNews since 2017, take off in the morning. “He’s been a member of our flying club for at least fifteen years. He’s a regular rider as he resides in the area,” he said.
