New Delhi, July 27 -- Authorities are searching for three individuals who were aboard a small private plane that crashed into the ocean off the central California coast

Emergency responders were alerted after receiving radar loss signals and 911 calls from concerned residents near Pacific Grove, local station KSBW-TV reported. Witnesses described hearing a loud aircraft engine revving followed by a splash in the water.

The aircraft, a Beech 95-B55 Baron twin-engine plane, departed from San Carlos Airport at 10:11 p.m. local time. According to flight tracking site FlightAware.com, it was last detected near Monterey at 10:37 p.m.

A coordinated search effort was launched involving the US Coast Guard, California's Department of Forestry an...