Private Cessna plane crashes off coast of Latvia

Four people are feared dead after a private aircraft crashed off the Latvian coast.

Nato jets were scrambled to intercept the plane as it tracked an erratic course over several European countries on Sunday.

Pilots were unable to make contact with the aircraft, which slammed into the Baltic sea after rapidly losing speed and altitude.

The Cessna Citation 551 aircraft had taken off from the Spanish city of Jerez in the afternoon, but disappeared from radar while flying over the Baltic Sea northwest of the Latvian port city of Ventspils, Swedish news agency TT reported. The aircraft, registered in Austria, was travelling to Cologne, Germany. According to German media, there were three passengers on board, in addition to the pilot.

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German newspaper Bild said that the plane had reported shortly after take-off that there was a problem with pressure problems in the cabin.

Authorities lost radio contact with the aircraft soon after, and Spanish and French fighter jets were dispatched to intercept the plane.

But when they reached the plane, they saw nobody sitting in the cockpit, Bild said. Latvian and Swedish rescue and coast guard vessels were patrolling the crash site and a nearby passenger ferry was alerted to help in the efforts.

Debris from the plane and an oil spill have been found at the site, Swedish media reports said.