Three dead in California after small plane crash near Monterey Bay, Coast Guard says

Federal officials are investigating private plane crash off California’s central coast

Plane crashed in the Pacific Ocean 200 to 300 yards off Point Pinos, near Pacific Grove, California (AFP via Getty Images)

Three people are dead after a small private aircraft crashed on California’s Central Coast, according to officials.

The U.S. Coast Guard station in Monterey received a relay at 10:55 p.m. Saturday that a twin-engine Beechcraft plane that took off from San Carlos with three people onboard had crashed 200 to 300 yards off Point Pinos, an outcropping at the southern end of Monterey Bay roughly 125 miles south of San Francisco.

The Coast Guard launched a rescue helicopter from San Francisco and a search boat from Monterey to hunt for survivors of the crashed plane, which had a tail number of N8796R.

A boat crew and drones from CAL Fire, as well as local police departments, joined the search.

The wreck was eventually located and its three passengers were found dead, the Coast Guard told The New York Times.

Plane crashed late Saturday evening near Point Pinos in Pacific Grove, California, after taking off from San Carlos about 30 minutes earlier, killing three passengers onboard, officials say (AFP via Getty Images)

The names of the passengers were not immediately made public.

The Independent has requested comment from the Coast Guard.

The crash occurred roughly 30 minutes after takeoff near the Monterey Regional Airport, the flight’s intended destination, according to flight tracking site Flightradar 24.

Bodies were recovered off the coast of Pacific Grove, KSBW reports, and aircraft debris has washed up onshore.

"I was going to sleep and heard this loud engine grumbling. Sounded like a Cessna, but it was really low and loud. It kind of felt like it was over the house, and there was a pop," Brian Mitchell, who was in the area from Sacramento visiting a relative, told the outlet.

Federal officials including the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash.