http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007...2907122532.txt
Two killed, one missing after plane crashes off of Carlsbad coast

By: SARAH WILKINS and PAUL SISSON - Staff Writers

CARLSBAD ---- A four-seat Cessna airplane crashed off the coast of
Carlsbad shortly after taking off from McClellan-Palomar Airport
Sunday morning, killing two female passengers and leaving a third male
passenger missing, authorities said.

The San Diego County Medical Examiner's office did not release the
names of the dead or missing by late Sunday night. According to data
from the Federal Aviation Administration, the Cessna was registered to
a man named Leroy F. Kochert, who has a Phoenix address.

A Coast Guard crew suspended its search for the missing passenger at 6
p.m. Sunday, and the crash is under investigation by the National
Transportation Safety Board, officials said. Calls to the home of a
Leroy Kochert in Phoenix went unanswered Sunday.


A spokesman with the Federal Aviation Administration said the plane, a
propeller-driven Cessna model 182Q built in 1979, left
McClellan-Palomar Airport at 9:45 a.m., headed west, then crashed into
the ocean at approximately 9:50 a.m. The crash occurred in deep water
about one mile from shore.

An FAA spokesman said he would not speculate about the cause of the
crash. Weather officials said a heavy marine layer blanketed the coast
at the time of the crash.

Coast Guard officials and local lifeguards from Oceanside, Carlsbad,
Solana Beach and Encinitas said boaters saw the plane go down and
reported the accident to emergency personnel.

"I don't know if they heard (the distress call) over the radio, but
three or four (boaters) saw the plane go down," said Petty Officer
Anastasia Devlin, Coast Guard spokeswoman. The Coast Guard did not
receive a mayday call, she added.

Dave Wagner, seasonal supervisor of Oceanside's lifeguard department,
said Sunday that he arrived at the wreck about 10 minutes after it was
reported.

"The first thing we noticed was the debris," he said. "There were
wheels and parts of the fuselage and personal items floating in the
water. It was pretty horrific to see," Wagner said.

Encinitas lifeguard Capt. Larry Giles said lifeguard Lt. Paul Chapman
and senior lifeguard Joe Gaydos were the first to arrive at the crash
site.

"They were able to grab two of the deceased," and put them aboard a
fishing vessel that had arrived at the site of the crash, Giles said.

Chapman assessed the victims and pronounced them both dead, Giles
said.

Though the wreckage sunk deep into the water, the crash left a field
of debris floating in the area, including a wallet and flight log
recovered by authorities, Giles said.

"Apparently for a while, (the plane was) submerged, then debris
started floating up," he said.

News of the crash sent three lifeguards scrambling from the Solana
Beach lifeguard station at Fletcher Cove.

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