Medical helicopter crashes off Catalina Island with two dead and one missing

Titles and summaries are AI-extracted from news reporting; every source is linked below. Event id 0ba29ec5-1a76-4282-ada5-bb1fe9991dfe.

Where: Avalonresolved to locality33.389, -118.424
When: Occurrence date not stated by reportingFirst reported 2026-10-01
Sourcing: 7 reports7 reports across 6 outlets · independence not established
How far this got: localizednamed facility unresolvedThis signal has no sensor recommendation, so there is nothing specific to look for.

Summary

A medical helicopter with five people aboard crashed into the ocean off Catalina Island, California, shortly after takeoff from Avalon on September 30, 2026. Four people were rescued and transported to hospitals; two were in stable condition and two in unknown condition. Two fatalities have been reported, and one person remains missing. The helicopter is believed to be submerged in approximately 240 feet of water. Search and rescue operations involving the US Coast Guard, local fire and sheriff's departments are ongoing. The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration are investigating the incident. The helicopter is believed to be owned by REACH Air Medical Services.

What imagery could confirm

Which satellite to use, what to look for and why, and whether post-event imagery has been found. Part of the event detail on Pro.

What remains unresolved

named facility unresolved

Timeline

11 recorded change(s). The ledger starts when this event was first folded: the initial observation is not recorded as a change, so an empty timeline means nothing has moved since, not that nothing is known.

2026-10-01member countour measurement6 → 7reports joined

10 more change(s) — the values are part of the event detail on paid plans.

Sources

Grouped by outlet. Syndication is not collapsed, so several outlets can carry one wire story — the count is breadth of carriage, not independent confirmation.

nypost.com
- Helicopter crashes off Catalina Island with 5 people aboard2026-10-01
ocregister.com
- Medical helicopter crashes off Catalina Island; 4 pulled from the sea2026-10-01
nbclosangeles.com
- Rescues underway after medical helicopter crashes into water off Catalina Island2026-10-01
nbcsandiego.com
- Rescues underway after medical helicopter crashes into water off Catalina Island2026-10-01
foxnews.com
- 1 missing, 4 rushed to hospital after helicopter crashes off Southern California island2026-10-01
economictimes.indiatimes.com
- Medical helicopter crashes off California’s Catalina Island, 2 killed and 1 missing2026-10-01

7 reports in all; the full list with the facts taken from each is part of the event detail on Pro.

Related events

0 related event(s) and 2 place(s) or facilities — the same facility, place, actor or campaign. Part of the event detail on Pro.

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  -H "Authorization: Bearer ond_YOUR_API_KEY"

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