Pilot Missing in Marine Jet Crash : Search: Teams combed 480 square miles of ocean for a pilot from El Toro base who disappeared off San Clemente Island.

Search teams were looking for the pilot of a Marine Corps F/A-18A Hornet that crashed into the ocean Tuesday night while on a routine training exercise at San Clemente Island, military officials said.

U.S. Navy and Coast Guard search and rescue teams on Wednesday combed more than 480 square miles of ocean between San Clemente and Catalina islands for the single-seat jet aircraft and its pilot, Marine Lt. Mark J. Gelgean, 27, of Hanford. Marine authorities said that Gelgean and his wife live in the El Toro area but declined to identify her.

Despite the widespread search, all that was turned up were a few floating fragments from the downed fighter-bomber and an abandoned life raft, military officials said. It is unclear if the life raft belonged to the McDonnell Douglas-made jet.

“All we found was wreckage of the aircraft,” Marine Lt. Gene Browne said.

Gelgean, who was assigned to the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station, was part of a training exercise in which fighter pilots were learning how to fly the sleek F/A-18A Hornet, identical to those used by the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, Browne said.

Gelgean and other members of the Marine All Weather Fighter Attack Squadron 121, part of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, were practicing tricky aircraft carrier landing techniques at night.

The aviators were landing and taking off from a San Clemente Island airstrip that was modified to simulate an aircraft carrier deck, Browne said.

During the training exercise, the ground control crew on San Clemente Island suddenly lost voice and radar contact with Gelgean at 9:35 p.m. Browne said, and the Coast Guard was immediately notified.

Browne said that it was not immediately known how the ground crew lost contact with Gelgean, who is an experienced flier of the Navy A-6 Intruder but was just learning the more powerful F/A-18A.

Throughout the day, rescue ships and aircraft searched unsuccessfully for Gelgean in the choppy waters near the islands.

The life raft, which was damaged, was found Wednesday morning bobbing in the center of the channel that separates the two islands, Coast Guard Chief Warrant Officer Dan Dwell said.

It was spotted by the crew of a Coast Guard helicopter flying in the overcast sky above, he said.

Surrounding the life raft was a large pool of bright green dye that was noticeable for miles, Coast Guard spokeswoman First Class Petty Officer Brenda Toledo said.

“You can see that stuff from way out in the sky,” Toledo said. “It spreads out fairly quickly and instead of looking for a small person, you see a large splotch of green.”

After the Coast Guard helicopter reached the life raft, a rescue swimmer jumped into the ocean and searched the area for any life. No one was found, Dewell said.

Dwell said that it was not yet confirmed whether the life raft belonged to the fighter but that it and the other pieces of debris found during the search “were consistent with that sort of aircraft.”

Naval investigators were expected to inspect the debris Wednesday night to determine if it belonged to the missing aircraft.

The lengthy search operation also involved a Coast Guard search jet, an 82-foot Coast Guard cutter, the Point Stuart, two Naval ships and a variety of other military aircraft, officials said.