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English Channel, 1 mile off Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex -
United Kingdom
Phase:
Landing
Nature:
Private
Departure airport:
Shoreham Airport, West Sussex (EGKA)
Destination airport:
Investigating agency:
AAIB
Confidence Rating:
Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative: The aircraft ditched into the English Channel off Widewater Beach in West Sussex. The aircraft sustained substantial damage and the two occupants were uninjured. They swam to shore, before being checked over by paramedics who then gave them the all clear.
Two hours later, at 6 pm, the RNLI inshore lifeboat from Shoreham was launched to recover the plane as the tide went out, and part of the tail emerged 50 metres from the shore. The crew secured a line on the plane and pulled it into onto the beach.
UPDATE: The official AAIB report into the accident was published on 12 October 2017, and the following is the summary from that report (see link #1 for the full text)...
"On departure from Shoreham Airport, as the aircraft climbed through 450 feet, the engine abruptly stopped producing power and the aircraft was ditched a short distance from the beach at Shoreham-by-Sea. Despite a detailed examination of the aircraft, the cause of the abrupt power loss during the takeoff was not established."