FOR PROMO IMAGE USE ONLY FORESTDALE 06/14/22 A big salute from the skies above as a Coast Guard rescue helicopter makes a low flyover the ceremony precisely at 10 am at the Forestdale Elementary School's annual Flag Day celebration on the Sandwich school's front lawn. Steve Heaslip/Cape Cod Times
San Diego, California – All six people aboard a small plane that crashed into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Point Loma on Sunday have been confirmed dead, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The twin-engine Cessna 414 went down around 12:30 p.m., shortly after taking off on a return flight to Phoenix. The aircraft had flown into San Diego from Arizona the day prior, according to tracking data from FlightAware. The Coast Guard reported locating a debris field roughly five miles off Point Loma later that same day, in waters approximately 200 feet deep.
Though the FAA has confirmed the fatalities, the identities of the six passengers have not yet been released. The plane is listed in FAA records as owned by Optimal Health Systems, an Arizona-based supplement company. However, the company said it sold the aircraft in 2023 to private individuals and suggested the federal database may be outdated. In a public statement, company founder Doug Grant noted that several passengers were personally known to him and offered condolences to the victims’ families.
As the flight departed San Diego, the pilot struggled to gain altitude and maintain course, according to air traffic control audio posted by LiveATC.net. Radar data shows the plane was flying at about 1,000 feet when the pilot was instructed to climb to 4,000 feet. Controllers attempted to direct the aircraft to a naval landing strip on Coronado Island, but the pilot said he could not see the airfield. Moments later, repeated “Mayday” distress calls were broadcast before radar contact was lost.
The National Transportation Safety Board has taken over the investigation into the cause of the crash, but has not yet released further details.
This is the second fatal crash involving a small Cessna aircraft in the San Diego area in recent weeks, following another incident that killed six people in foggy conditions.
