A large-scale coordinated search operation is ongoing for four remaining members of a family whose small aircraft vanished over waters off North Andros, the Bahamas, on Monday, following an in-flight emergency that left one person already confirmed dead, according to local authorities and family statements.
The doomed flight, a US-registered five-seat Piper PA-34 with registration number N212ML, was carrying experienced pilot Mario Lamar, his wife Lili, and their two grandchildren Sofia Sosa and Christian Sosa. The group was heading from Great Harbour Cay, where they had finished a holiday at their second home, to Opa-locka, Florida, when the aircraft ran into trouble mid-flight.
The family’s last communication was a text message sent Monday confirming the group had departed for home. When hours passed with no further contact, relatives grew alarmed. In an official statement released Tuesday, the family confirmed one person on board had been found dead but declined to release the victim’s identity, requesting privacy to process their loss.
Preliminary flight tracking data confirms the aircraft departed just after 10 a.m. local time, and contact with air traffic control was lost roughly 13 miles west of Andros. Before radar contact was lost, the plane was recorded circling near Red Bay, North Andros, before beginning an uncontrolled descent.
Multiple agencies have been activated for the search: the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF), the Bahamas Air Sea Rescue Association, and the US Coast Guard all deployed assets to the region within hours of the plane being reported missing. Local commercial fishermen have also joined the operation to assist with scouring the search area, and additional civilian vessels organized by family friends are en route from Florida to boost search capacity, alongside another private vessel already staging in Bahamian waters.
Initial sweeps of the plane’s last known position off North Andros’ west coast returned no trace of the aircraft or remaining passengers as of late Tuesday night. Search efforts were temporarily paused after worsening weather created unsafe conditions for crews, but operations resumed once conditions stabilized. RBDF Public Relations Officer Lieutenant Darius Adams confirmed late Tuesday that search teams would continue scouring the area overnight, despite ongoing choppy sea conditions that had delayed the start of operations.
“ We have another flight that’s going out first light,” Adams said, adding that difficult sea conditions would not stop teams from continuing their work.
Bahamas police have stated that locating the aircraft and its remaining occupants remains their top priority, and officials have committed to releasing new public updates as more information becomes available. For their part, grieving family members have issued a public appeal for additional assistance from anyone in the region who can help, saying they are desperate to bring their remaining loved ones home. Relatives also emphasized that pilot Lamar had extensive training and decades of flying experience, and that the Piper aircraft was well-maintained, fully inspected, and outfitted with all required safety equipment before takeoff.