Medical Plane Crash Kills at Least 2 in California

The pilot of a medical flight in California declared an emergency due to smoke in the cockpit before the plane crashed in Humboldt County, killing at least two of the four people on board, according to officials.

Ian Gregor, an FAA spokesman, said the Piper PA31 was going to make an emergency landing in Crescent City after the pilot complained of smoke in the cockpit around 1 a.m.

A release from REACH Air Medical Services and Cal-Ore Life Flight confirms they lost communication with the aircraft at 1:05 a.m. The flight departed Crescent City Airport at 12:29 a.m. en route to Oakland International Airport with four people on board: the pilot, a transport medic, a flight nurse and a patient.

The plane was missing for more than eight hours today before search crews from the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office located the crash site in a remote area in Humboldt County.

The conditions of the other two on board the aircraft is unknown.

The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash.