The Coast Guard suspended their search Saturday evening for a downed civilian aircraft approximately 110 miles east of Charleston.
Coast Guard 7th District suspended the search after searching approximately 3,516 square miles for 76 hours.
“It is with a heavy heart that we suspend our search for the missing aircraft and its five passengers,” said Capt. John Reed, Commander, Sector Charleston. “I have spoken with the family of those that were on this plane and extend my deepest sympathies to them and all those who have been hit by this tragic loss at sea.”
The Air Force Rescue Coordination Center (AFRCC) notified Coast Guard 7th District watchstanders Thursday of a civilian aircraft emergency at 11:33 a.m. The Jacksonville Air Route Traffic Control Center received a report from the aircraft of an in-flight emergency, lost contact on radar and notified the AFRCC.
Jamie Mitchum, a local pilot from Berkeley County, was one of the victims in the crash.
After the U.S. Coast Guard announced plans to end the search, his family released the following statement:
Dear family and friends,
The past few 3 days have been very difficult for our family. Today, we met with the lead coordinator for the US Coast Guard in regards to the massive Search & Rescue efforts made to locate any survivors from the lost aircraft that my uncle was aboard.
In short, we have been navigated throughout this exhaustive process, which has now been brought to a close.
It is with great sadness, that we have been informed of the conclusion of the efforts to locate survivors. Today, the Coast Guard has officially suspended their Search & Rescue due to the lack of any supporting evidence that indicates survivability at this time. No debris was able to be recovered and no survivors have been found.
We would like to thank the entire Coast Guard & Navy crews, as well as all supporting agencies who worked diligently around the clock in an effort to recover any debris from the incident or find any survivors.
All family members of the 5 individuals onboard were part of this meeting and each of us have determined that we do not wish to share any information regarding other members; Therefore, we respectfully ask that any comments do not include any names of others involved or their family, as this is a sensitive situation. Each of us must manage our own personal situations, as we see fit.
We have had a volume of information to digest at this point. We will need a little time to gather our emotions and contemplate what to do next. My Aunt Sandra and her children Brock and Brooke and the family as a whole are exhausted from the extensive efforts. In light of the situation, they are respectfully requesting that Sunday be a day that no food, calls, visits or messages be communicated with the immediate family.
Additionally, I would like to address the early on concerns about my mother, Lynn Mixon, and relay that she is fine medically and it was a direct response to the stress of the situation. She and my father Gerald Mixon are grieving the loss of her baby brother and are appreciative of every prayer, call, message and food preparation made.
We understand your sense of urgency to pay your condolences, share your love and support for us, and join in mourning the loss of my Uncle, Jamie Mitchum. However, we will need a day to catch our bearings so we can begin to mourn together as a community. We will be holding a memorial service and details will follow as we put plans into place.
From the Mitchum family, our hearts and prayers are with all parties involved and their families, as they were close friends. We pray for those who have lost loved ones and ask that you all continue to pray for all of those affected by this great tragedy. Our communities have truly experienced a devastating loss.
God bless you all for the love, support and amazing prayers that have already been prayed on our behalf.
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