The Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has launched an investigation into an aircraft accident at the Baramita Airstrip, North West District (NWD) on Monday.
This was confirmed by the Director General of the GCAA, Colonel Egbert Field, who stated that the single-engine Cessna Caravan, attached to Air Services Limited (ASL) with registration number 8R-GZR, overran the runway and ended up being stuck in the mud. He noted that while he remains informed by a team that was deployed to the area, he could safely say that the aircraft, which departed the Eugene F. Correira International Airport at Ogle, East Coast Demerara (ECD), did not suffer any major damage. In addition, he added that the police and several passengers on board were also unharmed.
“After the aircraft overran the runway, it slid off the runway and ended up in the mud, which played a major part in bringing the plane to a halt. The pilot and passengers were quickly evacuated from the aircraft, but based on initial reports, no injuries were reported,” Field told the Guyana Times. Furthermore, he stated that a preliminary investigation will determine what caused the aircraft to overrun the runway. On April 10, 2026, a single-engine Cessna aircraft, bearing registration number 8R-YAC, crashed shortly after taking off from Mahdia, Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), leading to the death of the pilot, Nicaraguan national Captain Ryder Castello. It was reported that the aircraft departed Mahdia at approximately 08:10h on a cargo shuttle flight bound for Imbaimadai, Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), with an expected arrival time of 08:40h.
However, it failed to report its arrival, prompting a flight progress check at 08:44h. At the time, weather conditions in the area were reportedly poor, with heavy rainfall and reduced visibility. The GCAA swiftly responded to the incident, initiating protocols for a missing aircraft involving a Cessna 208 operating along the Mahdia-Imbaimadai route. Search efforts led to the visual identification of the suspected crash site by two Trans Guyana Airways Cessna Caravans and a Britten-Norman Islander. Subsequently, a Guyana Defence Force (GDF) rescue team, comprising special forces and medical personnel, was deployed to the location.
After a day of rescue and recovery missions, Captain Ryder Castello was found and transported to Georgetown. Three months after the incident, investigators were wrapping up their final phase of the probe. To date, the findings of the crash are yet to be released.
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