More search crews deployed to look for plane off East Coast

CHARLESTON, S.C. – The U.S. Coast Guard is continuing to search for a downed aircraft about 110 miles (177 kilometres) off the coast, east of Charleston, South Carolina.

WCIV-TV reports the Coast Guard says crews searched throughout the night Friday and remained on scene Saturday.

Officials say five people were on board the Piper PA-31 aircraft, which departed from the Robert F. Swinnie airport in Georgetown County on Thursday morning and then disappeared over the Atlantic Ocean. The flight was bound for the Bahamas.

The names of the passengers or pilot haven’t been released.

The Coast Guard has two cutters and aircraft from the Elizabeth City, North Carolina, air station searching. A Navy P-3 Orion plane is also helping.

The Federal Aviation Administration will not release information about the plane’s owner until it’s found.

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Information from: WCIV-TV, http://www.abcnews4.com