California, Jul 9 (IANS): Six people were killed when a small business jet crashed in the western US state of California, authorities said.

Police responded to the plane crash at 4:15 a.m. local time (1115 GMT) in Murrieta, a city in southwestern Riverside County, about 150 km southeast of Los Angeles, according to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, Xinhua news agency reported.

"Deputies located an aircraft fully engulfed in flames in a field. Six occupants from the plane were located and pronounced deceased at the scene," said the department.

The Cessna C550 business jet took off from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas about 3:15 a.m. local time (1015 GMT).

It was the second fatal crash in the area this week. A student pilot was killed and three others were injured when a Cessna 172 crashed on Tuesday while departing a local airport.

The crashes are being investigated by the US Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.