At least 3 dead after small plane crashes off Newport Beach

A small private plane crashed in the water off Newport Beach on Sunday evening, killing at least three people, Newport Beach police said.

“Whether or not we have more victims, I don’t know,” Newport Beach Police Sgt. Steve Burdett said.

The single-engine Beechcraft Muskateer was traveling from Mexico to Torrance when the crash occurred  about 5:45 p.m., according to Ian Gregor, spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration.

After the crash, the plane was upside down in the water in Newport’s Back Bay. The plane was owned by a Palos Verdes real estate agent, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the accident. It typically takes the NTSB months to come up with a probable cause for accidents.

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 Photo: KTLA News

Comments

[Cameron Losey]

This is really sad. Chuck Chambers was also known as Carlos Fiesta. He had one or more websites with information about Baja California. You could tell he had a real love for the place. He wrote about his solo adventure from San Pedro all the way down the Pacific Coast of Baja and back up the entire Sea of Cortez...in a 17' panga. It was a riveting story and I couldn't peel myself away from the computer. I told my wife, "this guy sounds really cool. I feel like I could be friends with him. " So she said, "why don't you call him up". I did and we talked for a while. Such a nice guy. We met a couple of times and he even invited me down to Baja with him and his buddies. I was never able to go, but you can imagine how friendly he was to include a person he barely knew to fly down with him. What a tragedy. So sorry for his family. Chuck Chambers, Rest In Peace.