Transaven Let 410 plane crash

The Let 410 belonging to Transaven took off from Caracas, capital of Venezuela, bound for Los Roques islands, a popular tourist spot 168 kilometers (104 miles) north of the Venezuelan capital. 14 people – 12 passengers and 2 crew members – were onboard. The plane disappeared from radar screens over the ocean.

The pilot made a distress call reporting engines failure to the control tower in Los Roques islands. The plane at the time was about 38 kilometers (23 miles) from the island chain, and was flying at 3000 feet above the ocean. It was the last message received by the air traffic controllers.

It is assumed the pilot tried ditching near the coral reefs surrounding Los Roques. But no signs were found of the wreckage or 14 people on board. Helicopters and boats crisscrossed an area spanning approximately 400 nautical square miles in search of the wreckage, which could have drifted far in strong currents.

Transaven is a small turboprop operator which specialises in linking Caracas with tourist islands in the southern Caribbean region.