A tragic scene unfolded as a twin-engine Beechcraft 95 crashed on Catalina Island Tuesday evening, resulting in the deaths of all five individuals aboard. According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, an S.O.S. emergency notification from a cellphone was received around 8 p.m., guiding deputies and search and rescue teams to the site one mile west of Catalina Island Airport, KTLA reported.
Identification efforts for the victims of the crash are ongoing despite the rugged, steep terrain which has posed challenges to recovery teams. Ali Reza Safai, 73, of Los Angeles, was identified by his wife as one of the people on the plane. According to NBC Los Angeles, the plane had taken off from Santa Monica Municipal Airport and briefly touched down on Catalina before embarking on its fateful flight, whose intended destination remains a mystery.
The airport, commonly referred to as the Airport in the Sky due to its elevation of 1,602 feet, features a single 3,000-foot runway predominantly servicing general aviation. The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board have taken the lead on the crash investigation, looking into the cause of the crash with no initial contributing factors immediately apparent, as per ABC7.