Four American Family Members Missing After Plane Disappears Off Bahamas Coast

A Piper PA-34 carrying four people vanished on September 7 en route to Miami; search efforts are underway.

2 reports on this incident · first at Sep 7, 2026, 9:18 p.m. ET

By AI ReporterFirst reported Sep 8, 2026, 3:24 a.m. ETUpdated Sep 8, 2026, 6:22 a.m. ET

A small plane carrying American family members disappeared off the coast of the on September 7, according to ABC News, Metro, and the New York Post. The aircraft, identified as a Piper PA-34 five-seater with registration , departed Great Harbour Cay and was bound for Miami Executive Airport. Air traffic control lost contact with the flight approximately 13 miles west of , ABC News reported. Sources disagree on the departure time: Metro reported around 11:12 a.m., while the New York Post reported The passengers were identified as Mario Lamar Sr., 80; Lili Lamar, 79; Sofi Sosa, 28; and Christian Sosa, 22, according to ABC News. Mario Lamar is an experienced pilot with more than 40 years of flying experience, ABC News reported. Flight tracking data from FlightAware shows the aircraft's altitude dropped from 10,000 feet to 3,700 feet in three minutes, according to ABC News and the New York Post. The plane passed through rough weather near the north end of , which delayed search efforts, the sources reported. Registry records list the aircraft as a Piper PA-34-200T twin-engine piston landplane, with the registered owner Seneca Aviation Inc. The owner of record is not necessarily the operator, the pilot, or otherwise connected to the flight. The NTSB database lists 36 other cases involving the Piper PA-34-200T since 2008, of which 7 involved a fatality; that record says nothing about the cause of this incident. The U.S. Coast Guard, the Royal Bahamian Defense Force, and the Police are investigating, according to ABC News, Metro, the Independent, and the New York Post. The cause of the disappearance has not been determined.

Earlier reports

Sep 7, 2026, 9:18 p.m. ETFirst report
Four Missing After Plane Disappears Off Bahamas Coast
A small plane carrying four people disappeared on Monday, September 7, 2026, west of Andros Island in the Bahamas, according to ABC News. The aircraft, a Piper PA-34 five-seater, departed Great Harbour Cay at approximately 11:12 a.m. and was bound for Miami Executive Airport. Air traffic control lost contact with the aircraft about 13 miles west of Andros Island.
The passengers were identified as Mario Lamar Sr., 80; Lili Lamar, 79; Sofi Sosa, 28; and Christian Sosa, 22. Mario Lamar is an experienced pilot with more than 40 years of flying experience, ABC News reported. The U.S. Coast Guard, the Royal Bahamian Defense Force, and the Bahamas Police are involved in the response, according to ABC News.
Federal Aviation Administration registry records list the aircraft as a Piper PA-34-200T with registration N212ML, and list the registered owner as Seneca Aviation Inc., based in Wilmington, Delaware. The owner of record is not necessarily the operator of the flight. The NTSB database, which begins in 2008, lists 36 other cases involving the Piper PA-34-200T, of which 7 involved a fatality; that record says nothing about the cause of this incident.
The cause of the disappearance has not been determined, and the search is ongoing.

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Reference data

From aircraft and geographic registries, not from the news sources. Registry records can be out of date, and describe the aircraft and the place only — they say nothing about what happened.

Registration: N212ML
Type: Piper PA-34-200T — twin-engine piston landplane
Engines: CONT MOTOR TSIO-360 SER
Registered owner: Seneca Aviation IncThe owner of record is not necessarily the operator, the pilot, or otherwise connected to the flight.
Terrain elevation: 3 ft
Nearest aerodrome: 15 miles W of Andros Town Airport (MYAF/ASD)

Sources

Revision history

Version 48 Sept 2026, 10:22current
Updated to reflect the latest reporting and clarify the investigation status.
Version 38 Sept 2026, 08:22
Added registration and owner details, clarified conflicting departure times, and noted the investigation is ongoing.
Version 28 Sept 2026, 05:52
Updated to include the aircraft registration and additional details from ABC News and the New York Post.
Version 18 Sept 2026, 01:22
First published.
Version 18 Sept 2026, 01:18current
First published.

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