Plane May Have Crashed in Sea Near Pendleton
The Coast Guard was searching Monday night for an unidentified single-engine airplane that may have plummeted to the sea about five miles from shore between Camp Pendleton and San Clemente.
A woman told authorities at the San Onofre truck weighing station about seeing a small aircraft apparently crash into the sea, the California Highway Patrol said. The Coast Guard was notified and sent a Falcon jet, two helicopters and an 82-foot cutter to the area.
Jim Calagari, a supervisor at San Diego approach control at Miramar Naval Air Station, said the pilot of a Beechcraft Bonanza requested air traffic information from the tower about 7:45 p.m. Calagari said the plane was about 40 miles northwest of Lindbergh Field. A few seconds later, Calagari said, the tower lost all contact with the aircraft.
“We do not have confirmation that that was the airplane they saw going down,” he added.
Calagari said the plane was approaching Montgomery Field, and the tower didn’t know how many people were on board.
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