A small aircraft crashed into Austria’s Attersee near Steinbach in Upper Austria on Wednesday morning, prompting a major search-and-rescue operation that was still under way through the day. The aircraft was widely reported as a Tecnam P2002JF Sierra that had departed Salzburg shortly before contact was lost over the lake. Emergency teams have not yet recovered the wreckage, and the number of people on board remained unconfirmed.
Police, fire brigades, water rescue units, sonar teams, divers and a rescue helicopter were deployed to the scene. Oil booms were also positioned as a precaution against any fuel leak. Reports placed the wreck area roughly 300 metres from shore in very deep water, complicating recovery efforts. Early accounts indicated the aircraft plunged rapidly into the lake after leaving Salzburg at around 11:04 and lost contact about 25 minutes later. At the latest update, crews were still searching the submerged site and no official confirmation had been given on the occupants or the exact aircraft identification.