A search effort is underway after a small plane, reportedly carrying seven individuals, crashed off the coast of North Carolina on Sunday afternoon.

The one-engine Pilatus PC-12/47 crashed into the water roughly 18 miles northeast of Michael J. Smith Discipline in Beaufort, North Carolina, at round 2 p.m. native time, a spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) instructed Newsweek.

"It's unknown presently how many individuals have been on board the plane," the spokesperson stated in an announcement.

However WCTI reported that officers imagine three adults and 4 youngsters, together with the pilot, had been aboard the plane when it crashed.

Drum Inlet, North Carolina 28577, USA
Inventory photograph reveals a Coast Guard rescue helicopter in flight. A aircraft is feared to have crashed close to Drum Inlet, North Carolina.iStock

An air visitors controller reported the plane was "behaving erratically" earlier than it disappeared from radar, the Coast Guard stated in an announcement.

A 47-foot motor lifeboat was launched from Coast Guard Station Fort Macon, together with a small boat from Coast Guard Station Hatteras, to seek for the lacking plane.

An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew from Air Station Elizabeth Metropolis was additionally launched to conduct a search of the realm.

The Coast Guard Cutter Rollin Fritch, native fireplace division and nationwide park service seaside crews are additionally aiding with the response.

The FAA spokesperson stated the company had issued an Alert Discover on Sunday to alert public security companies in regards to the lacking plane.

"The FAA and the Nationwide Transportation Security Board will examine," the spokesperson stated. "The NTSB will likely be answerable for the investigation and can present further updates."

The Nationwide Transportation Security Board has been contacted for extra remark.

The crash comes after a small airplane that was carrying undocumented migrants crashed close to Presidio, Texas, in December 2021.

A number of individuals who have been on the plane have been injured and brought to hospitals in El Paso for therapy. Investigators imagine elements together with weight and gas capability may have contributed to the aircraft's fall, as a result of six individuals had been crammed right into a four-seat plane that was low on gas.

However authorities stated they discovered no survivors following a aircraft crash near San Diego in the identical month.

In that incident, a small enterprise jet had been set to land at Gillespie Discipline, however crashed in foggy circumstances in an unincorporated space of El Cajon, California, on December 27.

"Firefighters weren't capable of finding any survivors on the crash scene," the San Diego County Sheriff's Division stated in an announcement.

Replace 2/14/22, 8:01 a.m. ET: This text has been up to date with an announcement from the Federal Aviation Administration and extra info.