The bodies of the trainee pilot and the instructor, who were on the two-seater aircraft that went missing after taking off from Jamshedpur, were recovered at the Chandil Dam in Seraikela-Kharsawan district on Thursday.

NDRF team along with the Indian Navy unit on Thursday morning was informed by the local fishermen of a body floating near the Chandil Dam, which was identified as that of the trainee pilot Subhrodeep Dutta, a native of Adityapur in Seraikela-Kharsawan based on the nameplate on his chest and the flight uniform.

The body of the instructor Jeet Shatru, a native of Patna, Bihar was recovered also floating in the dam on Thursday afternoon.

“We have sent both the bodies for post mortem at the MGM Medical College and Hospital in Jamshedpur. The bodies will be handed over to their relatives after the autopsy. The Indian Navy unit will continue its search operation to salvage the debris of the trainer aircraft,” said Seraikela-Kharsawan deputy commissioner Ravishankar Shukla.

The trainer aircraft, a Cessna 152 owned by a private flying school, went missing after taking off from the Sonari aerodrome on Tuesday.