Florida Plane crashes, 3 presumed dead

SANFORD, Fla. Multiple law enforcement agencies are searching for a plane that crashed into a lake near the Volusia-Seminole county line.

Federal Aviation Administration officials said three people were on board the the Connection 900 plane when it went down in Lake Harney.

The Federal Aviation Administration said the twin-engine Beechcraft was landing at Orlando Sanford International Airport when it crashed about 11:30 a.m. Friday into Lake Harney, which is about 35 miles (56 kilometers) northeast of Orlando. Reporters on the scene saw authorities bringing pieces of wreckage onto shore.

The two passengers were identified as Men Tao, 22, and Hou Xupeng, 23, both Chinese nationals who were staying in Sanford. The Seminole County Sheriff’s Office identified the pilot as 56-year-old Kamalesh Naik of Sanford, Florida.  Their bodies have not been recovered. The plane belonged to a commercial flight school at the airport.

The victims’ bodies have not yet been recovered, officials say. The search will resume on Saturday morning and officials ask that people avoid the area.

The plane belonged to a commercial flight school at the airport. Naik’s LinkedIn account lists his occupations as flight instructor and airline pilot.

Commercial Training Solutions, which owned the plane involved, released the following statement:

“Commercial Training Solutions can confirm that a King Air aircraft that crashed in Lake Harney, Florida this morning involved one of our employees and two trainees. We extend our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the victims of this tragedy. We are awaiting updates from local authorities on developments around this incident, and will cooperate fully with the FAA and the NTSB in the ongoing investigation. No further information is available at this time.”