Ten missing in Lake Erie plane crash

[realmac]

Ten Missing in Lake Erie plane crash



Here's an excerpt:
-- A commuter flight carrying 10 people crashed into the icy waters of Lake Erie on Saturday after the pilot issued a distress call, the Coast Guard said.

"They don't see any survivors," said Paul Mulrooney, a spokesman for Georgia Express, the Canada-based airline that owned the Cessna 208 Caravan single-engine plane, one of seven in its fleet. "At this point in time, it's looking rather bleak."


The Ontario-based air service runs only during the winter, when ice makes the ferries inoperable, Mulrooney said.

A U.S. Coast Guard cutter was expected to reach the site about a half-mile west of Pelee Island by 11 p.m., about six hours after the crash, he said.

"They're pushing through 8-10 inches of ice, so progress was rather slow," Mulrooney said.

The plane itself -- which was carrying nine passengers and the pilot -- was afloat.