In memory
REACH air ambulance
N313RX · Wednesday, September 30, 2026 · Pebbly Beach, Catalina Island
On the evening of Wednesday, September 30, a REACH air ambulance crew was flying a patient off Catalina Island for care on the mainland, the Coast Guard believes. At about 7:45 p.m., the helicopter went into the ocean near the Pebbly Beach heliport by Avalon with five people aboard, the FAA says. It had just taken off, NBC Los Angeles reported.
The pilot and a crew member died, according to the FAA’s preliminary information. Their names had not been released as of Thursday morning, October 1. Two other people were taken to hospitals on the mainland, LA County Fire said.
The patient they were carrying was still missing on Thursday morning, October 1, and the Coast Guard said it was still searching.
This page
This is a first, short page, written the morning after. We will add who they were if their families and REACH choose to share it, and we will not name anyone before then.
REACH
REACH Air Medical Services said it was gathering information and working with emergency crews, and that its thoughts are with the families, loved ones and colleagues of those affected, NBC Los Angeles reported.
The investigation
The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation, with the FAA. Investigators have not said what caused it, and we will not guess.
The helicopter was a Eurocopter EC135, the NTSB says. Public flight-tracking data, our own recording among it, identifies it as N313RX; officials had not named it as of October 1.
What we know about the crash
The incident page has what officials have said so far, and our recording of the evening’s flights.