LOS ANGELES, May 16 (UPI) — A pilot’s body was found in the wreckage of a plane in foothills near Mount Wilson after it disappeared Sunday while flying in foggy conditions near the Angeles National Forest, authorities said.
The Cessna 182 was en route to Santa Monica from San Diego and only the pilot was aboard, said Deputy Juanita Navarro-Suarez of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
The pilot’s identity was not released pending notification of his family, Lt. Larry Dietz of the L.A. County coroner’s office said. Investigators didn’t initially retrieve the body because of inclement weather.
Mount Wilson is about 90 miles northwest of San Diego and 35 miles northeast of Santa Monica and not a direct route on the flight plans.
The fixed-wing single-engine plane departed from Montgomery Field about 7:30 a.m. Over Los Angeles County, the plane veered northeast from its path to Santa Monica, according to radar information from the flight-tracking website FlightAware.
The radar lost contact with the plane about 8:30 a.m., said Allen Kenitzer, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration.
Officials launched a search-and-rescue effort but efforts were delayed by foul weather and limited information.
The wreckage was found shortly after 5 p.m. along the south side of Brown Mountain.
The plane was registered to a San Diego-based company, San Diego Skylane LLC, according to FAA registration records.
The Sheriff’s Department, the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
