The pilot of the small plane that crashed on Santa Catalina Island, killing five people, has been warned not to take off after dark in dangerous conditions. Now, a new report reveals why he waited until after dark to depart.
The twin-engine Beechcraft 95-B44 plane crashed about a mile from Catalina Airport just after 8 p.m. on Oct. 8.
A preliminary National Transportation Safety Board report found the plane had insufficient power and needed to be recharged just before takeoff. It also said that because the plane did not have takeoff clearance, airport management made it clear to the pilots that they should not depart after dark. However, the exact cause of the crash has not been determined.
The small, single-runway airport has no air traffic controllers, night staff, or runway lighting, so night operations are not allowed because it is unsafe. Perched atop a mountain 1,602 feet above sea level, this airport has a reputation for being a scary place to fly.
Federal Aviation Administration records show the Beechcraft plane was owned by Ali Safai, 73, of West Hills. Safai is the founder of the flight school that operated at the Santa Monica Airport until it closed in 2018.
He died in the accident along with Haris Ali, 33. Margaret Mary Fenner, 55 years old. Park Jo Eun, 37 years old. Gonzalo Rubel, 34, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office.
Beechcraft was sent to Catalina Island on the afternoon of Oct. 8 to rescue a flight instructor and two student pilots who were stranded on the island after their rented plane suffered a preflight mechanical failure, according to the report. That’s what it means.
The stranded group contacted the flight school where they rented the plane and were told another plane would pick them up and take them back to the Santa Monica airport. The responding plane was not operated by the flight school and belonged to a friend of the school’s owner, the report said.
The Beechcraft pilot was informed that before landing on Catalina Island at 6:20 p.m., he had to leave the island by sunset at 6:31 p.m., the report said.
However, when the pilots tried to prepare for takeoff, the right engine failed to start due to insufficient battery power, according to the report.
Airport management then told the pilot that the departure would not be approved because the charging time would be past sunset.
According to reports, the pilot insisted on taking off despite the danger of taking off after dark.
“Airport management advised that they could not stop him but that he would not be authorized to leave the country and would do so at his own risk,” the report said.
The report said airport surveillance camera footage showed the plane taking off from the runway at night. Tracking data showed that seconds after takeoff at 8:08 p.m., the plane climbed 75 feet above the runway, veered to the right and suddenly descended.
The plane crashed into a ridge 1.5 miles from the end of the runaway, and the main wreckage came to rest in a ravine about 450 feet west of the initial impact site, the report said. Members of Avalon and the Los Angeles County Fire Department and Sheriff’s Department joined the search and located the plane.
