Authorities from the US Coast Guard, the Navy, and US Customs and Border Protection are searching for survivors after reports of a "downed aircraft" with three people aboard near the Southern California coast.
Search efforts were underway Wednesday morning "after an aircraft debris field was located 1 mile (southwest) of San Clemente Island," the Coast Guard said on Twitter.
San Clemente Island is roughly 80 miles west of San Diego.
"Watchstanders at the Joint Harbor Operations Center in San Diego received the initial report of a downed aircraft at 7:53 a.m., from the Fleet Area Control and Surveillance Facility on San Clemente Island, reporting an aircraft emergency aboard a Phoenix Leer jet with three people on board," the Coast Guard said in a statement.
Earlier, the Coast Guard said it believed the aircraft belonged to Fireside Partners, a contractor based in Delaware. But the company told CNN it does not own or operate any aircraft, and none of its personnel were on board the flight.
When contacted by CNN, the Federal Aviation Administration directed questions to the military.
