Two people were killed and at least two people were injured after a small plane crashed in a residential area near San Diego on Monday, the authorities said.

The plane, a C340 Cessna, crashed about 12 p.m. local time in Santee, Calif., about 15 miles northeast of San Diego, Santee Mayor John Minto said.

Two homes were destroyed by the crash and 10 other homes were impacted, Justin Matsushita, Santee’s deputy fire chief, told reporters. Two people were confirmed dead, and two people were taken to hospitals for their injuries, he added.

The exact number of people who were on the plane or injured in the crash was unclear Monday afternoon, Matsushita said, “because of the extent of the damage” to the plane and the crash site, which he described as “pretty graphic stuff.”

The plane was heading from Yuma, Ariz., near the California border, to the Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport in San Diego, he said.

Although the homes “took the brunt force of the airplane,” Matsushita said, the plane also hit a UPS delivery truck, killing the driver. UPS confirmed the death, saying in a statement: “We are heartbroken by the loss of our employee, and extend our deepest condolences to his family and friends.”

The plane was owned by Sugata Das, a cardiologist in Yuma, according to Bharat Magu, chief medical officer of the Yuma Regional Medical Center. “As an outstanding cardiologist and dedicated family man, Dr. Das leaves a lasting legacy. We extend our prayers and support to his family, colleagues, and friends during this difficult time,” Magu said in a statement.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash. Donnell Evans, a spokesman for the FAA, said Monday evening that “we do not know yet how many people were on board.”

Matsushita said that although the authorities were “very confident” that nobody inside the homes had been killed, “as far as the plane occupants and the extent of the crash damage, it was non-survivable.”

Aerial footage by local television stations showed a home on the corner of the block turned to rubble, with only parts of its exterior left standing. The home next to it had a large, smoldering hole through its roof as fire crews hosed it down. On the street in front of the homes, a scorched UPS truck was seen with its front side bashed in.

The Red Cross set up a temporary evacuation center at a nearby YMCA for people displaced by the crash. Nearby Santana High School went into lockdown temporarily after the crash

(https://xoxohth.com/thread.php?thread_id=4940589&forum_id=2#43259238)

At least two people have died following the crash and two homes were destroyed.

Minutes earlier, air traffic control noticed something wasn't right.

"It looks like you are drifting off course. Are you correcting?” an air traffic controller could be heard asking.

The audio between the pilot of the Cessna heading from Yuma to Montgomery Field in San Diego and the air traffic controller reveals moments of intense alarm - and possible confusion.

The controller on the ground is heard warning the pilot that he is flying dangerously low and requesting that he increase his altitude.

"Climb immediately,” the controller says. “Maintain 4,000. OK. It looks like you are descending, sir. I need to make sure you are climbing, not descending.”

And then just a half-minute later the controller’s commands become more frantic.

"Low altitude alert. Climb immediately. Climb the airplane. Maintain 5,000. Expedite the climb. Climb the airplane please.”

“I believe the pilot was totally disoriented,” said Robert Katz, a certified flight instructor.

Katz said the track log data captured on the website Flight Aware tells the story of how this flight came to an end detailing how erratically the Cessna was climbing and descending in the final moments.

Katz said the cloud ceiling was low enough at the time that the pilot would have had to use an instrument landing system approaching Montgomery Field.

"In my opinion, he is clearly disoriented at that point,” said Katz. “He does not know which way is up and he is just along for the ride. And so is anyone else on board that plane, unfortunately."

(https://xoxohth.com/thread.php?thread_id=4940589&forum_id=2#43259244)

https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/audio-deadly-santee-plane-crash-pilot-disoriented-sugata-das-san-diego-california-yuma-cessna-air-traffic-control/509-de6fb8af-711c-448a-b2c3-07b15c817d80

(https://xoxohth.com/thread.php?thread_id=4940589&forum_id=2#43259249)

In 2010, a fortuitous incident sparked an interest in general aviation. As an instrument rated pilot with a multiengine rating, Sugata Das is owner pilot of a twin Cessna 340 as well as an RV9A, which he flies between Yuma and San Diego, his family home. Sugata and Sujata are doting parents to boys, ages 12 and eight.

(https://xoxohth.com/thread.php?thread_id=4940589&forum_id=2#43259252)