Coast Guard calls off search for pilot lost in Lake Erie

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Coast Guard on Thursday called off the search for a missing pilot whose twin-engine plane crashed just after taking off from a small airport near downtown.

Pilot Thomas Fijalkovich, 68, whose home is near Ravenna, about 25 miles southeast of Cleveland, has been identified as a contract employee for Aitheras Aviation Group, an aircraft charter company based in Cleveland.

The Coast Guard search ended at 1 p.m., about 16 hours after the plane went down Wednesday.

“The search was suspended for a variety of factors,” said Petty Officer Matthew Schofield. “The probability the individual can be found alive has been exhausted. It’s difficult to survive in water that is 32 degrees.”

Robert Lanier, a spokesman for the Coast Guard’s Cleveland district, said the search area was 26 square miles.

“We feel every area that could be searched was searched, several times over,” he said.

The Cleveland Fire Department continued to search by boat Thursday evening.

The Cuyahoga County coroner’s office reported earlier Thursday that the pilot’s body had been recovered. The office sent investigators to the scene and retracted the earlier statement.

The Beechcraft Baron took off from Burke Lakefront Airport at 7:25 p.m. Wednesday and crashed into the lake just north of a breakwall, airport spokeswoman Pat Smith said.