Pilot took off after dark in fatal Catalina crash. This could be the reason

The pilot of a small plane that crashed on Santa Catalina Island, killing five people, has been warned not to take off in dangerous conditions after dark. Now a new report sheds light on why he waited until after sunset to leave.

The Beechcraft 95-B44 twin-engine plane crashed about a mile from Catalina Airport just after 8 p.m. on Oct. 8.

A preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board indicates the plane did not have sufficient power and needed to be recharged shortly before takeoff. It also says that the plane was not cleared to take off and that the airport manager clearly told the pilot not to leave after dark. However, an exact cause of the crash is not given.

Due to unsafe conditions, night operations are not permitted at the tiny, single-runway airport – there are no air traffic controllers, no evening guards and no runway lighting. The airport sits atop a 1,602-foot mountain and has a reputation for being a scary place to fly.

According to the Federal Aviation Authority, the Beechcraft aircraft belonged to 73-year-old Ali Safai of West Hills. Safai was the founder of a flight school that operated out of Santa Monica Airport until its closure in 2018.

He died in the accident along with Haris Ali, 33; Margaret Mary Fenner, 55; Joeun Park, 37; and Gonzalo Lubel, 34, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.

According to the report, the Beechcraft was sent to Catalina to rescue an instructor pilot and two student pilots who were stranded on the island on the afternoon of Oct. 8 after a pre-flight mechanical malfunction in a chartered aircraft.

The stranded group contacted the flight school from which they had rented the plane and learned that another plane would pick them up and fly them back to Santa Monica Airport. The responding aircraft was not operated by the flight school and belonged to a friend of the school owner, according to the report.

According to the report, before landing on Catalina at 6:20 p.m., the Beechcraft pilot was informed that he needed to leave the island before sunset at 6:31 p.m.

But as the pilot tried to prepare for takeoff, the correct engine failed to start due to insufficient battery power, the report said.

The airport manager then informed the pilot that the loading time would extend beyond sunset and their departure would not be approved.

Despite the dangers of taking off after dark, the pilot insisted on taking off, according to the report.

“The airport manager informed him that although he could not stop him, his departure would be without authorization and at his own risk,” the report said.

According to the report, airport surveillance footage showed the plane taking off from the runway at night. Tracking data shows the plane climbed up to 75 feet above the runway, turned right and suddenly descended into a steep dive seconds after takeoff at 8:08 p.m.

According to the report, the aircraft struck a ridge 0.96 miles from the end of the runaway and the main wreckage came to rest in a ravine about 450 feet west of the original impact point. Emergency crews from Avalon, the LA County Fire Department and the LA County Sheriff's Office joined in the search and found the aircraft.