Pilot found dead after emergency crews locate downed aircraft near Sherman Oaks

Emergency crews have located an aircraft that suddenly lost signal while flying over Sherman Oaks on Saturday evening. The pilot, said to be the lone occupant, was declared dead after the plane was found on a steep hillside above a home in the Beverly Crest area.

Los Angeles Fire Department was first notified of the possibly downed single-engine aircraft just before 8:10 p.m., after air traffic control lost contact with the pilot near Stone Canyon Road and Muholland Drive. 

Crews searched a "large swath of mountainous territory" near Beverly Crest for hours before the plane was located at around 11:30 p.m.

LAFD officials noted that the plane was believed to be flying between Santa Monica Airport and Van Nuys Airport when signal was lost. 

Four dozen units worth of ground personnel were assisted by LAFD helicopters as they sought "to provide command support in the foggy skies above." Helicopter crews were reported to have "localized a signal from an aircraft Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon" somewhere within a quarter-mile of Beverly Glen Terrace and Beverly Glen Boulevard, LAFD said. 

Along with firefighters, FAA Air Traffic Controllers at Van Nuys Airport, Burbank Airport and Los Angeles International Airport, as well as the United States Air Force and the pilot's cellular telephone carrier, were working together in hopes of pinpointing the missing aircraft.

Search helicopters were grounded at around 10:20 p.m. due to the weather in the area, which was "shrouded with thick ground level fog."

Just before 11:30 p.m., crews located the airplane on a steep hillside above a home in the 3000 block of Beverly Glen Circle. The pilot, the sole occupant of the plane, was pronounced dead at the scene. 

Their identity has not yet been released. 

"A search of the immediate area will be conducted to confirm no other victims," LAFD said. 

This is a developing story. Check back for details.