A small plane carrying four family members flying back home to Florida from the Bahamas went missing on Monday, the U.S. Coast Guard and local authorities said.
The plane took off from Great Harbour Cay, an island in the northern part of the Caribbean archipelago of the Bahamas, and was heading to Miami Executive Airport in Miami-Dade County, the Royal Bahamas Police Force said in a statement.
“Police on the island of Andros are coordinating efforts to locate an aircraft believed to have crash-landed off the coast of Red Bays, North Andros. Police received a report at approximately 2:20 p.m., on Monday 7th, September, 2026, that an aircraft may have gone down in the waters off Red Bays,” police added.
The Police Control Room in New Providence said it contacted Air Traffic Control following the report.
“Information provided by the Operations Officer confirmed that a PA-34 Piper five-seater aircraft, bearing tail number N212ML, departed Great Harbour Cay at approximately 11:12 a.m., en route to Opa-locka, Florida. The aircraft had four person on board,” police confirmed in the news release.
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Air Traffic Control lost contact with the aircraft approximately 13 miles west of Andros Island, according to police.
“The Bahamas Air Sea Rescue Association (BASRA) was contacted and provided with the available information. BASRA advised that the United States Coast Guard (USCG) had attempted to search the area for the missing aircraft. However, due to inclement weather, the search was postponed until conditions became favourable,” police said, adding that “efforts to locate the aircraft and its occupants remain a priority.”
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) told Global News that it is supporting the search to locate the aircraft.
“At approximately 2 p.m. the Royal Bahamian Defense Force requested Coast Guard assistance following a report of a downed airplane with 4 people aboard approximately 15 miles off Andros Island, Bahamas. Southeast District command center watchstanders coordinated the launch of an HC-144 Ocean Sentry to assist Bahamian authorities with the search. The case is ongoing. For more information, please contact Bahamian authorities,” the USCG said in a statement.
“This is still an ongoing/active case,” a spokesperson for the USCG added.
Global News has reached out to the the Royal Bahamas Police Force and the Royal Bahamas Defence Force for further information, but has not received a response.
Silvia Larrieu said her uncle, Mario Lamar, 80, was piloting the plane.
In a video statement shared by WSVN-TV in Miami, Larrieu said that the plane was also carrying Lamar’s wife Lily Lamar, 79, and two of his grandchildren, Christian Sosa, 22, and Sophie Sosa, 28.
Larrieu said that the family has a home on Great Harbour Cay and spent Labour Day weekend on the island.
“They’ve spent their whole life going there. That’s like their second home,” Larrieu told the Miami Herald.
Larrieu pleaded with anyone who can help to assist in the search.
“Whether it’s by plane, by boat, any signs that you’ve noticed, to help us find them and bring them back alive,” Larrieu said to WSVN-TV.
—With files from The Associated Press
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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