A plane owned by a local pilot crashed on Catalina Island Tuesday night killing all five people aboard.
According to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, their Avalon station received a 911 SOS emergency notification from a “cellular device” at about 8:08pm. The automatic notification said the user’s cellphone had been involved in a collision with possible injuries and provided GPS coordinates.
“Avalon Station deputies responded to the location along with Los Angeles County Fire Department, Avalon Search and Rescue, and Avalon City Fire Department members,” said the statement.
“Under a unified command, they were able to locate the wreckage of a twin-engine aircraft approximately one mile west of Catalina Island Airport. While at the crash site, five adults were located and pronounced deceased at the scene.”
The Department said coordinated investigative efforts between the Avalon Sheriff’s Station, Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were underway Wednesday and that due to the rough, steep terrain, the scene was secured until the arrival of the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Emergency Services Detail members.
The airfield on Catalina Island is known as the Airport in the Sky because of its precarious location at an elevation of 1,602 feet (488 meters) on the island about 25 miles (40 kilometers) off the coast of Los Angeles. It has a single 3,000-foot (914-meter) runway.
About 4,000 residents live year-round on Santa Catalina Island, where tourists from the mainland are drawn for snorkeling, boating, hiking and strolling the picturesque streets of the oceanfront city of Avalon.
Flight tracking websites show the plane took off from Santa Monica Airport and landed at the Catalina airport at about 6:20pm. It took off from Catalina about 90 minutes later and disappeared from radar coverage shortly thereafter.
The plane owner has been identified as Ali Safai, the former owner of a Santa Monica based flight school Santa Monica Aviation. Safai closed the business in 2018 but continued to rent space for his private plane at SMO.
Staff at SMO businesses expressed concern and sympathy for the lives lost in the crash
"The aircraft was owned by our dear friend, Mr. Ali Safai. A former operator of an aviation maintenance facility and flight school known as Santa Monica Aviation, Ali retired from commercial aviation about five years ago. Despite stepping away from the industry, he remained a beloved and active member of the Santa Monica aviation community," said Ben Roberts, COO of Proteus flight school.
"Ali kept his airplane at Santa Monica Airport, where he was always a cherished friend to all of us at Proteus. His spirit of camaraderie and generosity was evident when he learned that a Proteus airplane was stranded at Catalina Airport due to mechanical issues yesterday. Without hesitation, he volunteered to assist in retrieving the stranded occupants, who were left without transport or lodging at the top of Catalina Island," said Roberts
Roberts said the individuals aboard the aircraft were like family, and this loss weighed heavily on their hearts. He asked for privacy for the victims' families and the aviation community, allowing all them space to grieve and heal.
A plane owned by another flight school crashed at SMO in 2022 killing two people aboard. Later that year a former Santa Monica mayor died when the plane he was traveling in lost power and crashed on the beach next to the Santa Monica Pier while trying to return to SMO.
Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Avalon Sheriff’s Station at 310-510-0174.
If you prefer to provide information anonymously, you may call “Crime Stoppers” by dialing (800) 222-TIPS (8477), use your smartphone by downloading the “P3 Tips” Mobile App on Google play or the Apple App Store or by using the website lacrimestoppers.org
matt@smdp.com
