NEW ORLEANS - Authorities say a small plane that crashed in Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans had been chartered by a couple taking an aerial tour of the city.

A woman survived Friday night's crash but two men remained unaccounted for Monday.

The plane crashed as it neared New Orleans Lakefront Airport. The airport director, Ben Morris, said Monday that the plane hit a rainstorm about the time of the crash.

The Federal Aviation Administration is looking into the cause. Morris said salvage of the wreckage was expected to begin by Tuesday morning.

First reports from the New Orleans Fire Department said the plane was on a training exercise but Morris and the Coast Guard said Monday it was on a tour.

Morris said the pilot had extensive flight experience.