Eduardo Hernández Vidaurreta, 65, used to pilot the Piper PA-46 Malibu plane that went down while carrying Cardiff City’s record signing Sala on January 21.
The experienced pilot of 44 years does not believe a “mechanical failure” caused the plane to crash en route to Cardiff from Nantes, France.
He said the plane “didn’t give me any problems” and was “marvellous to fly” during the estimated 200 hours he piloted it between 2012 and 2015.
“The plane didn’t fall to pieces, I’m sure it didn’t,” he told the media.
His comments contradict a chilling WhatsApp message Sala is reported to have sent to his friends and family during the flight over the English Channel.
In the apparently panicked text, Sala wrote: “It feels like the plane is falling to pieces.”
He suggested a search party should be sent to look for him “if you don’t hear from me in an hour and a half”, tragically adding: “Dad, I’m scared.”
The body of the 28-year-old Argentine footballer was recovered from the plane wreckage last week but the cause of the crash is yet to be determined.
The Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB), whose remotely operated vehicle (ROV) pulled Sala’s body from the plane wreckage, is still investigating the crash.
Eduardo said “it would surprise me” if a mechanical issue was found to be the cause of the crash.
He added: “It didn’t give me any problems. If someone is looking for a mechanical reason to explain the airplane’s crash, I think they are wrong.”
The plane is believed to have been caught up in severe weather while flying to Cardiff from Nantes, France, where Sala had spent the weekend.
Eduardo, a commercial pilot since 1976, was hired to fly the light aircraft between 2012 and 2015 by his friend Roberto Sastre.
The plane, which originally belonged to an aviation school in Florida, had a new engine fitted when he brought it to Spain.
He said the aircraft was in a “good condition”, with life jackets and emergency oxygen tanks on board, when it was sold to a British company in 2015.
“The company that bought the plane sent a mechanic to Spain to inspect it,” Sastre said.
“They didn’t find anything important. The plane could be sold, it was in good condition.”
Aviation expert Michel Polacco suggested David Ibbotson, the pilot of Sala’s plane may have been forced to land in the English Channel amid “difficult conditions”.
He said a technical malfunction, such as the engine freezing or stopping entirely, may have happened in mid-air while they flew over the Channel.
In contrast, aeronautical expert Juan Arturo del Azar told Argentine newspaper Clarin he believes the cause of the plane crash could be “disorientation” of the pilot.
He referenced Facebook comments in which Ibbotson admitted he was a “bit rusty” just days before the flight.
Ibbotson, from Scunthorpe, Lincs, told a pal: “Was not too bad when I got there, but I’m a bit rusty with the ILS [instrument landing system].”
The plane had requested to descend before it lost contact with Jersey air traffic control.
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