Members of the Guyana Defence Force Special Forces have successfully reached the crash site of the Air Services Limited Cessna 208 aircraft bearing registration number 8R-YAC, the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority has confirmed, recovering the body of the sole occupant, Captain Ryder Castillo.
The team is currently making preparations for the extraction of the pilot’s remains from the remote and heavily forested crash site.
“The Ministry of Public Utilities and Aviation, the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority, and the Guyana Defence Force join the wider aviation community in extending their heartfelt sympathies to the loved ones of the pilot,” the GCAA said in a statement.
The GDF Special Forces ranks were lowered into the jungle on Friday and, after spending the night anchored nearby, continued their trek to the crash site before successfully reaching it.
The aircraft disappeared on Friday after departing Mahdia, Region Eight, at approximately 08:10 hours on a cargo shuttle flight bound for Imbaimadai, Region Seven, with an expected arrival time of 08:40 hours. When the aircraft failed to report its arrival, a flight progress check was initiated at 08:44 hours, triggering a multi-agency search and rescue operation.
Weather conditions at the time were reported to be poor, with heavy rainfall and reduced visibility across the area — factors believed to have contributed to the crash.
Captain Castillo, a Nicaraguan national with approximately 20 years of flying experience, had been employed with ASL for approximately a decade. He was the sole occupant on board at the time of the incident.
The GCAA, the Ministry of Public Utilities and Aviation, and the GDF have extended their condolences to Captain Castillo’s family, colleagues, and the wider aviation community as they mourn his loss.
