File photo of James Horner holding up two Oscars at the 70th Annual Academy Awards. Image courtesy: Reuters
Oscar-winning composer James Horner is feared dead after the a plane registered to him crashed near Santa Barbara, California on Monday, killing its pilot, the plane's sole occupant.
Jay Cooper, a prominent music industry attorney, confirmed that a plane that crashed in the Los Padres National Forest, north of Los Angeles, belonged to his client but could not say whether Mr Horner was aboard the aircraft.
"He's an experienced pilot, but I know nothing else," Mr Cooper told Reuters.
Local fire authorities said the 9:30 am crash of the five-passenger plane left an impact crater and sparked a fire that charred more than an acre of brush, and that there were no survivors.
Captain Mike Lindbery of the Ventura County Fire Department said only one set of remains was found, but he did not know whether the crash victim had been positively identified.
The cause of the crash was not immediately known.
While it has not yet been confirmed that Mr Horner, 61, was piloting the plane, his assistant Sylvia Patrycja has written this message on her
Facebook page, "A great tragedy has struck my family today, and I will not be around for a while. I would like some privacy and time to heal. We have lost an amazing person with a huge heart, and unbelievable talent. He died doing what he loved. Thank you for all your support and love and see you down the road."
Mr Horner formed a long and successful partnership with filmmaker James Cameron, composing for his films
Titanic, Avatar and
Aliens. He won two Oscars for Titanic. Mr Horner's body of work also includes films such as
Braveheart, A Beautiful Mind, Avatar, Field of Dreams, Cocoon, Willow and
The Amazing Spider-Man.
Several Hollywood celebrities have tweeted about Mr Horner's presumed death, including director Ron Howard for whose
A Beautiful Mind he was nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe:
With inputs from Reuters