Pilot arranged Emiliano Sala flight after agent made 'insistent' phone calls for it to go ahead

The operator of a plane that crashed into the English Channel, killing professional footballer Emiliano Sala, arranged the fatal flight after receiving 'insistent' phone calls from a Premier League agent, a court has heard.

Sala, 28, and pilot David Ibbotson, 67, died after their single-engine Piper Malibu aircraft went down 22 nautical miles north-west of Guernsey on January 21, 2019.

The chartered plane was flying from Nantes to Cardiff, where Argentinian striker Sala was being transported having agreed a £15 million deal.

David Henderson, 67, is standing trial at Cardiff Crown Court charged with endangering the safety of an aircraft.

He began his evidence on Thursday by telling jurors 'not a day or hour goes by' that he does not think about the incident.

The qualified pilot said he was asked to fly the plane himself after receiving a phone call from football agent Willie McKay, but insisted he was unavailable as he was on holiday with his wife in Paris.

Henderson said he had known Mr McKay for a number of years and had hired out a several planes to him in the past, but he had 'no interest in football' and did not know who Sala was.

However, the pilot added that Mr McKay could be 'insistent' and 'kept asking', so he offered to find an available pilot as an alternative.

He subsequently contacted Mr Ibbotson, whom he claims 'immediately said yes'.

Henderson told the court that, while it was him that had organised the flight with Mr McKay, it was ultimately the responsibility of Mr Ibbotson to ensure the plane's safe passage.

He added: 'My intention was to leave it with him [Mr Ibbotson]. He had taken over responsibility of everything related to the flight.

'I believed David Ibbotson was experienced and capable of flying. I didn’t have any reservations about him making that trip.'

Henderson also described Mr Ibbotson as an 'experienced' pilot and said he was 'reassured' about concerns the fellow pilot had raised over the aircraft's mechanics when it was examined by a French engineer after landing in Nantes.

The jury heard that the plane crashed during stormy weather on the return flight to Cardiff.

Sala's body was found among the wreckage of the aircraft, but Mr Ibbotson's body has never been recovered.

Asked whether there would have been any 'repercussions' if the flight had been cancelled due to the poor weather, Henderson said he would have 'respected' the decision and told Mr Ibbotson 'if you don't feel safe don't fly'.

After receiving the news that air traffic controllers had lost contact with the plane, Henderson said: 'I was very, very concerned. Distressed really. I feared the worst.'

'The whole scenario, the loss of an airplane, someone I know, and a passenger is very desperate.

'I was badly affected by the news.'

Police arrested Henderson at his home on June 19, 2019, shortly before he was due to celebrate his daughter's birthday, the court heard.

He said the arrest came 'as a real shock' and that he 'felt numb'.

Fay Keely, the owner of the plane, told the trial on Wednesday she had informed Henderson that Mr Ibbotson should not fly the aircraft again after she was notified by the Civil Aviation Authority of two infringements that had taken place while he was pilot.

Ms Keely said: 'As far as I was concerned, I had made my feelings clear that he shouldn't be flying the aircraft.'

However, Henderson said he phoned Ms Keely after receiving the order from her email to explain the situation and that he changed her mind about Mr Ibbotson.

He added: 'I said he's [Mr Ibbotson] mortified by it and admitted his mistake and that it won't happen again.

'I believe I'd brought her around about David Ibbotson.'

Henderson received his private pilot's licence in 1983 after serving in the RAF for two years, later getting a commercial licence to fly in the UK and America, the court heard.

The 67-year-old, of Hotham, East Yorkshire, denies endangering an aircraft by being reckless or negligent.

The charge states Henderson allegedly organised the flights knowing Mr Ibbotson did not have a commercial pilot’s licence; and/or Mr Ibbotson’s rating to fly the type of aircraft involved had expired; and/or bad weather was forecast and he was not competent to fly in it.

He has admitted a separate charge that he was the operator when his plane took payment for Sala to fly 'without permission or authorisation' from outside Britain.

The trial continues.