Body of missing US pilot found

SHENYANG - The body of the US pilot, missing since Tuesday when his light aircraft crashed into a lake in Northeast China's Liaoning province, was recovered around noon on Friday.

Rescuers recover the body of David Riggs, from the Caihu Lake in Faku county of Shenyang city, Northeast China's Liaoning province, Sept 20. Riggs, a US pilot who went missing after an aircraft crash on Tuesday, was making a trial flight in preparation for an air show held in the county. [Photo/Xinhua]

The body of pilot David Riggs was recovered at 12:12 p.m. from Caihu Lake in Faku county of Liaoning's capital city of Shenyang after three days, of continuous searching, according to the headquarters of the "AOPA-China Fly-In 2013" air show.

The accident occurred around 1 p.m. on Tuesday when the Lancier aircraft with Riggs and a Chinese translator onboard crashed into the lake during a trial flight.

The translator was pulled from the water but died later in hospital.

Riggs was an experienced Hollywood aerobatic pilot who had set several speed records worldwide. He came to Shenyang to attend the air show which is scheduled to run from September 20 to 22 in Faku county.

The U.S. team may now be absent from the performance due to the accident. A total of 12 aircraft from Sweden, the United States, France and the Lithuania were due to take part in the event.

The aircraft was assembled at a local airport but had completed three successful trial flights before the accident.

The aircraft, which is too small to be equipped with a black box, belongs to the MACH 1 aerobatic team from the United States.

The CAAC Northeast Regional Administration has set up a work team to investigate the cause of the accident.