Three people who survived a Friday night plane crash at sea were rescued Saturday morning, when they were found tired and nervously clinging to a buoy five miles from the southern tip of mainland Florida.

For more than 12 hours, rescue teams in helicopters, planes and boats searched the waters west of Marathon for the single-engine plane, which had disappeared from radar on its way south from Tampa.

But the relentless search ended Saturday at 10 a.m., when a U.S. Coast Guard rescue boat found all who were aboard the downed plane -- two men and a woman -- five miles southwest of Cape Sable, Fla., the southernmost point in mainland U.S.

All three had minor injuries, but were in good condition when they were taken to a hospital, according to Lt. j.g. Matthew Meinhold, a Coast Guard spokesman.

Meinhold said the group had played their cards right, making a temporary raft by tying two life jackets together and using it to reach a buoy floating above a lobster trap. The decision kept the group safe and made them easier to spot.

``They kept their wits about them,'' Meinhold said.

Names for the 61-year-old pilot, 31-year-old man and 26-year-old woman were not immediately available.

The Friday night search began at 9:30 p.m., when Coast Guard officials were contacted by a Miami air traffic controller, who warned them a small plane was losing altitude near Marathon because its engine had stalled, according to Petty Officer 3rd Class Barry Bena.

Radar last spotted the falling plane three miles southwest of Cape Sable. The Coast Guard and several agencies searched 2,200 square miles of dark ocean using a team that included a C-130 Hercules, an HU-25 Falcon jet, and helicopters and boats.

But at 10 a.m., a small Coast Guard boat led by Petty Officer Christopher Hopton spotted the plane crash survivors clinging to a buoy two miles southwest of the reported crash site.

The three were quickly taken to shore, Bena said, where they were then transported to Fisherman's Hospital in Marathon.

``They did the right thing. They held on to an object that helped them all stay afloat for the amount of time they did.''

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