Body found at North Carolina plane crash site as family name four teen passengers among the eight feared dead

The US Coast Guard has recovered a body after a small plane carrying eight people crashed into the ocean off North Carolina’s Outer Banks as four of the passengers were named by family.

Search and rescue efforts are still underway for the other passengers who were in the aircraft that was flying “erratically” before it dropped off the radar on Sunday.

Carteret County Sheriff Asa Buck said they have identified the person whose body was recovered on Monday but refused to provide details.

Meanwhile, relatives identified four of the passengers as teenage friends Kole McInnis, Daily Shepherd, Jake Taylor and Noah Styron, who were returning from a hunting trip when the plane went down, according to NBC News.

There is no indication that anyone survived the crash, Mr Buck said, adding that the main body of the aircraft is yet to be located by the search crew. However, three debris fields that were seen moving farther offshore into the Atlantic Ocean have been identified.

Authorities said the family members of the missing passengers live in Carteret, and that they have been in “very close contact” with them.

The single-engine Pilatus PC-12 reportedly went down about four miles (6.4km) east of Drum Inlet. It was believed to have left Hyde County airport at 1.35pm on Sunday and was last seen near Beaufort at 2.01pm, according to FlightAware.

“Watchstanders at the Coast Guard Sector North Carolina command center received a report of a possible downed aircraft from an air traffic controller at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point informing that the aircraft was seen behaving erratically on radar and then disappeared from the radar screen,” the US Coast Guard said in a statement.

Officials from the Coast Guard said that a cutter would be available at the scene overnight. Boats and a helicopter from three Coast Guard stations, local fire and sheriff’s department personnel and National Park Service beach crews have been deployed for the search and rescue operation.

Story continues

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper extended his condolences to the affected families.

“Our prayers and deep concerns go to the families and loved ones of the passengers. We’re grateful for the people in our state and local agencies who are supporting the efforts of the Coast Guard and other first responders,” the governor said on Twitter.

Carteret County Public Schools, where the teens were reportedly enrolled, reacted to the crash in a statement to WITN.

“We are incredibly saddened as we join with the Down East and Eastern North Carolina community as we await official word on the airplane crash off the coast of Drum Inlet, North Carolina,” it read. “Crisis teams are on school campuses to support students, staff and families.”

The crash is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board.