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Search for plane missing over the Channel called off

Getty Images File photo of a Piper PA-28 Cherokee aircraftGetty Images
The missing plane is believed to be a Piper PA-28 Cherokee aircraft

The search for a plane which vanished over the Channel has been called off.

The small aircraft was carrying two people and disappeared after taking off from Wellesbourne in Warwickshire on its route to France on Saturday.

A French Coastguard spokesperson said the disappearance of the plane, thought to be a PA-28, was "worrying".

The French Navy mobilised an aircraft, a helicopter and a boat to aid the search alongside a British plane.

But the search ended on Sunday. Searches "by means of opportunity" will continue - if any boats or crews in the Channel find any debris, they should report it to the coastguard.

Map showing Le Touquet and Wellesbourne
The aircraft was travelling from Wellesbourne to Le Touquet in northern France

After the light aircraft disappeared around midday on Saturday en route to Le Touquet in northern France, the French Coastguard asked vessels travelling in the Channel to look out for debris.

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