3 hurt in small plane crash in California

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif., March 8 (UPI) -- Three people were hurt, two critically, when a single-engine civilian airplane crashed on a beach at Camp Pendleton, Calif., authorities said.

U.S. Marine Corps and Federal Aviation Administration officials said the single-engine Cessna 172 crashed about 5:50 p.m. Saturday, The San Diego Union Tribune reported.

FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said the aircraft was bound for Montgomery Field in San Diego, but it wasn't clear when or from where the flight originated. The California Highway Patrol said the pilot issued a distress call before going down.

The cause off the accident was under investigation.

The incident was the area's second involving a small airplane in two days, the newspaper said. Stone Froberg, 70, of San Diego is missing and believed to have died Friday when his rented Cessna 172 crashed in the Pacific Ocean about 35 miles west of Oceanside.