SAN CLEMENTE, Calif.- Searchers Wednesday found a debris field in the ocean about a mile southwest of San Clemente Island, where authorities were sent on a report that an aircraft went down in the area with three people aboard.
The U.S. Coast Guard was notified shortly before 8 a.m. by the air traffic control tower on the island regarding the possible plane down, and the debris field was subsequently located, according to Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Levi Read.
According to the Coast Guard, a crew from Air Station San Diego launched aboard an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter for the search and rescue operation.
Read said the aircraft is a Phoenix Air Learjet.
The search involves personnel from the Coast Guard, the U.S. Navy and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Read said.
The plane was reported down about one-mile southwest of San Clemente Island, which is within Los Angeles County just southwest of Catalina Island.
For the record:
An earlier version of this story said the Phoenix Learjet was owned by Fireside Partners out of Delaware. The aircraft is not owned by Fireside Partners.
