Police confirm body of man recovered, following plane crash

Police have confirmed the body of a man has been recovered, following a plane crash at Bradda Head on Monday.

In a statement, officers say the multi-agency search operation in Port Erin has now finished, with the area now fully open to the public.

Detective Inspector Neil Craig says, "Sadly, I can confirm that the body of a male, who we believe to be the pilot of the aircraft, has been recovered from the scene and I would like to pass on my deepest condolences to the gentleman’s family. At this time we do not believe anyone else to have been aboard the aircraft.

 Given the location of this incident, the work which has been undertaken over a number of days at the scene has been an extremely challenging one for everyone involved, and it is in this respect that I would like to extend my personal thanks and gratitude to all those who were involved, many of whom were volunteers.

Collectively, we have been able to recover a substantial amount of material from the site, however several small fragments of the aircraft have been unable to be recovered simply due to the challenging and inaccessible location in which they came to rest. We are seeking to attempt to recover these small items in the coming weeks, as and when they displace to areas which prove to be more accessible. We are however content at this time that these small pieces of debris pose no threat to the either the general public or the local wildlife.

The matter is now subject of an investigation on behalf of the Coroner of Inquests and as such no further information is being released at this time. Whilst I appreciate that there may be a lot of public interest around what has happened I would respectfully request that people refrain from speculating as to what has happened, given this extremely distressing time for the gentleman’s family.

I would also seek to remind the public that restrictions currently remain in place with regards to the air and sea space around Bradda Head until 11pm this evening, Thursday 20th July 2023. Additionally, I would like to appeal for anyone who may have either witnessed the collision, or who has video footage of the incident to please make contact with us at Douglas Police Headquarters on (01624) 631212."