Experimental-Plane Pilot Killed in Ocean Crash
A small experimental airplane crashed off Dana Point on Friday, killing the only person on board.
Police said they found the body of an “elderly man” floating about 2.6 miles north of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station after the 4:30 p.m. crash. The man’s name was not released.
The plane, described by aviation officials as a BD-10 home-built, experimental, high-performance mini twin-engine jet, was registered to Frank F. Everett of Laguna Beach. A woman answering his telephone late Friday declined to comment.
The single-person aircraft crashed about 20 minutes after taking off from John Wayne Airport en route to Catalina Island, an FAA official said. “We have no theories” about the cause of the crash, said Mike Fergus, a spokesman for the federal agency.
Ann McCarley, a spokeswoman for John Wayne Airport, said the plane has been based there for about three years.
An Orange County sheriff’s spokesman said the body was found “floating with the debris” by Harbor Patrol crew dispatched to the area after a mayday call about 4:40 p.m.
U.S. Coast Guard spokeswoman Jamie Devitt-Chacon said the Guard planned to have several boats at the site all night to pick up debris and help with the investigation. “We’ll reevaluate in the morning,” she said.
Devitt-Chacon said the cause of the accident is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board.
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Times staff writer Jia-Rui Chong contributed to this report
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