Debris in water may be from missing plane

from a plane was discovered in the waters of the Bahamas on Tuesday, in the same area authorities were searching for a private aircraft, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

The passengers were Jennifer Blumin, 40, of Manhattan; her sons, ages 3 and 4; and pilot Nathan Ulrich, 52, of Lee, N.H., the Coast Guard said Tuesday.

“We found a debris field in the search area,” Petty Officer Eric Woodall said. “We believe it’s from their plane, but we’re working to verify that.”

He said parts, including a seat, will be sent to the plane’s mechanic for identification. A swimmer from a helicopter pulled up items from the wreckage in the water.

“We’re continuing to search for survivors in that area,” Woodall said. “We’ll adjust our pattern and the search will continue. This is certainly a big discovery and shows where the plane is or last was.”

A helicopter crew discovered the debris about 15 miles east of Eleuthera in the Bahamas, about a 75-minute flight over the Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Fort Lauderdale.

Miami Air Traffic Conistration trol told the Coast Guard’s Miami Command Center that it lost contact with the plane about 2:10 p.m. Monday, when it was reported to be at an altitude of 24,000 feet and flying about 37 miles east of Eleuthera.

Blumin is founder of Skylight Group, an event management company that stages fashion shows, photo shoots and corporate events in private and public spaces.

From 2005 to 2014, Ulrich served in the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary as a pilot at Air Station Cape Cod, the Coast Guard said.

The plane, a Mitsubishi MU-2B-40 twin-engine turbo prop, is owned by a consulting company on Long Island, N.Y., according to Federal Aviation AdminDebris records.

It flew from Rafael Hernandez Airport in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, at about 11 a.m. Monday and failed to arrive that afternoon at its destination, Titusville, Fla., on the east coast, said Marilyn Fajardo, a deputy public affairs officer for the Coast Guard.

Three planes, a helicopter and two ships, all from the Coast Guard, had searched an area about 810 square miles near Eleuthera.

They were joined by the Royal Bahamas Defence Force and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

AMBER DE VOS/COURTESY The passengers were Jennifer Blumin, right, of Manhattan; her sons, ages 3 and 4; and pilot Nathan Ulrich, left, of Lee, N.H., the Coast Guard said Tuesday.