officials on the island have said.
Major Basil Jarrett of the Jamaican Defence Force said the plane went
down about 14 miles (22 kilometres) north-east of Port Antonio.
Jamaican and US Coast Guard planes and ships are on their way to the scene.
The aircraft was due to fly to Naples, Florida, before it went off course.
The US had scrambled two fighter jets to investigate why the plane
failed to respond to air traffic control from 10:00 local time (14:00
GMT).
A North American air defence (Norad) spokesman said it was not
possible for the jet fighter pilots to see inside the plane before it
crashed as the windows were frosted or fogged over.
A tweet from Norad suggested the pilot or pilots could be unresponsive
due to "possible hypoxia".
A spokesman said the jets were launched at 11:30 local time (15:30 GMT).
The plane was flying at an altitude of 25,000 feet southbound over the
Caribbean Sea, approaching the north east point of Jamaica, when it
went off radar.
Earlier, the US Federal Aviation Administration said it has
co-operated with Cuba air traffic control in monitoring the plane,
despite the countries not having full diplomatic relations for more
than half a century.
(Photo: Two F-15 fighter jets, like these shown, were sent)
The two passengers on board have been named as Larry Glazer, a real
estate developer from Rochester, New York, and his wife Jane.
The couple were both licensed pilots.
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