Five people lost their lives in a plane crash on California’s Catalina Islands after the aircraft took off without clearance from the airport.
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The twin-engine Beechcraft 95 crashed shortly after takeoff around 8 p.m. Tuesday, approximately a mile west of Catalina Airport, near the island city of Avalon. Officials reported that the Avalon Station of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department received an SOS from one of the aircraft’s occupants, notifying them of the incident.
Five adult victims, including 73-year-old flight instructor and plane owner Ali Reza Safai, were found and pronounced dead at the crash site. The identity of the plane’s pilot during the incident remains uncertain.
The Special Enforcement Bureau of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Office shared photos and video on Instagram depicting the wreckage of a mangled plane resting on the side of a hill. The images reveal that the plane’s tail appears to have detached.
The Cause of the Plane Crash Is Still Under Investigation
The cause of the crash is still under investigation. However, airport officials reported that the aircraft was unauthorized to take off as the airport was closed at the time of the incident, according to the Press-Telegram.
The airport, located approximately 1,600 feet above sea level, operates daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. However, pilots may arrive and depart after hours. This is provided they pre-arrange their flights with general manager Carl True told the outlet.
“He pre-arranged for his arrival after 5 p.m.,” True explained, “but not for the takeoff, and he was advised of that.”
Flights, whether incoming or outgoing, are prohibited after sunset. This is due to the airport’s lack of nighttime operational capabilities, including insufficient lighting along its 3,000-foot runway. While the pilot did not receive clearance, this action was deemed not illegal, True pointed out.
Alongside Safai, the medical examiner’s office identified the other occupants of the plane on Thursday. Two of them were 33-year-old Haris Ali and 55-year-old Margaret Mary Fenner. The identities of the other two passengers, described as men in their 30s, remain undisclosed pending family notification of their passing, according to officials.
Safai was a flight instructor at Santa Monica Airport. He also managed Santa Monica Aviation until it ceased operations in 2018, per the National Business Aviation Association. He stored his plane at the airport. However, it remains uncertain whether he was piloting it at the time of the crash.