The Air Accidents Investigation Branch has released a statement
Two seat cushions have been found by authorities that are likely to have come from the plane carrying missing Cardiff City footballer Emiliano Sala.
They were discovered on a beach in north-eastern France, around 40 miles from where the aircraft is believed to have vanished just north of Guernsey.
The Argentinian player disappeared last Monday when his flight went missing over the English Channel as he was travelling to Cardiff to begin life at his new club following his signing for a club-record £15 million fee.
"On the morning of Monday, January 28, we were advised by the Bureau d'Enquetes and d'Analyses, the French safety investigation authority, that part of a seat cushion had been found on a beach near Surtainville on the Cotentin Peninsula," an Air Accidents Investigation Branch spokesperson said
"A second cushion was found in the same area later that day.
"From a preliminary examination, we have concluded that it is likely that the cushions are from the missing aircraft."
The official search for the missing player was called off on Thursday as the chance the player had survived the crash was at that point viewed as extremely unlikely, although Sala's family wanted it to continue. A
GoFundMe was subsequently set up with the aim of beginning the search again.
