Investigators to check licence of pilot missing with Premier League footballer

Investigators are checking whether Dave Ibbotsen - the pilot from Lincolnshire who disappeared over the Channel Islands alongside Cardiff City footballer Emiliano Sala had the correct licence.

Father-of-four Ibbotsen, from Crowle, near Scunthorpe, was flying the Argentinian striker from France to Wales when the light aircraft vanished on Monday night.

The search for the Piper PA-46 Malibu carrying the pair was formally called off on Thursday.

Romina Sala said that she feels her 28-year-old brother, who had just signed for Cardiff City, and his pilot are still alive as she called on rescuers not to give up hope.

Guernsey's harbour master Captain David Barker earlier confirmed the "difficult" decision to end the search, saying the chances of survival were "extremely remote".

The Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) has opened a probe since the light aircraft disappeared from Radar on Monday night.

"We are looking at all operational aspects of the flight including licensing," an AAIB spokesman said.

Mr Ibbotson, 59, of Crowle, Lincolnshire, held a private pilot's licence and passed a medical exam as recently as November, according to Federal Aviation Administration records.

The Civil Aviation Authority said the aircraft was registered in the US, so fell under the States' regulations.

US law states private pilots cannot make a profit by carrying passengers.

The flight left Nantes for Cardiff at 7.15pm on Monday, and after requesting to descend, lost contact with Jersey air traffic control.