Search continues for aircraft that disappeared during flight from St Vincent to Tobago
KINGSTOWN, St Vincent (CMC) — Regional aviation authorities continued search-and-rescue operations on Sunday after a small aircraft travelling from St Vincent and the Grenadines to Tobago disappeared over the southern Caribbean Sea.
The Dominican Republic-registered Beech 58P Pressurised Baron aircraft, registration HI-1145, departed Argyle International Airport in St Vincent at 11:52 am on Friday and was scheduled to arrive at the ANR Robinson International Airport in Tobago.
Authorities said air traffic controllers lost contact with the aircraft while it was en route, triggering a regional search involving aviation and emergency officials in several Caribbean territories.
Flight tracking data showed the aircraft was operating under visual flight rules (VFR) at an altitude of approximately 4,025 feet and travelling at about 142 knots before its signal disappeared.
Its last recorded position was over the southern Caribbean Sea, in the vicinity of Grenadian or Venezuelan territorial waters.
Officials have not disclosed how many people were on board the aircraft, nor have they released the identities of the pilot or any passengers. The Beech Baron is capable of carrying a pilot and up to five passengers.
Up to Sunday, authorities had not confirmed that the aircraft had crashed, and no wreckage had been located.
Sources familiar with the investigation said air traffic controllers at Argyle International Airport alerted Piarco Air Traffic Control in Trinidad and Tobago after communication with the aircraft was lost.
A source at Piarco confirmed that regional aviation authorities were actively searching for the missing aircraft.
Flight records indicate that HI-1145 had been operating normally in the days leading up to its disappearance. The aircraft completed several flights between Canouan and mainland St Vincent on June 10 and June 12 without incident and is understood to have regularly operated services between Grenada and Trinidad and Tobago.
The disappearance is the second involving an aircraft travelling along the Canouan to St Vincent route in recent years. Another aircraft vanished after operating in the area in December 2023, and that case remains unresolved.
Authorities in St Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago and neighbouring territories said search efforts were continuing as they sought any sign of the aircraft or its occupants.
