The pilot of a light plane which crashed into the ocean off the Santa Barbara County coast is now being identified.
A single engine plane being flown by Deborah Nicholson of Lake Tahoe crashed just after takeoff from Santa Barbara Airport Sunday morning. The plane went down about two miles off the coast of Isla Vista. An air and boat search failed to turn up any sign of the 61-year-old woman, but an oil slick and debris were spotted in the ocean.
The Coast Guard suspended search efforts yesterday, with the new focus on recovering the pilot’s body and the wreckage of the plane.
The water is the area is nearly 200 feet deep. A dive team from the Los Angeles County Sheriff Department has been called in to help because of its special training in deep water search efforts.
