US Coast Guard searches for medical aircraft carrying six from Bermuda to Boston

By Sheila Dang

Oct 3 (Reuters) - A medical transfer aircraft carrying six people was reported missing on a flight from Bermuda to Boston, the US Coast Guard said on Saturday.

The Federal Aviation Administration told the Coast Guard early on Saturday that it had lost contact with the plane, a Gulfstream jet, a Coast Guard spokesperson said by email.

Four Canadians are on the plane, Canadian Minister of Transport Steven MacKinnon said on X.

"We are closely monitoring the situation and are working with the relevant authorities as search and rescue efforts continue," he wrote.

The aircraft, registered to Latitude Air Ambulance, departed Bermuda at 12:41 a.m. local time, according to data from flight tracking website FlightAware. The plane was flying at 24,000 feet (7,300 metres) for much of the flight before descending 13,000 feet in about two minutes shortly before flight controllers lost contact, data showed.

Local TV station Boston 25 posted an audio clip from Boston Logan International Airport in which an air traffic controller can be heard asking the Gulfstream pilot, "You said you're coming in blind? Is that what you said?"

The controller then asked whether the plane was declaring an emergency. No response was heard.

Latitude is based in Ontario, Canada, and provides medical evacuation services. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Coast Guard said it dispatched air and surface crews to search for the plane near Nantucket, an island community south of mainland Massachusetts.

The Bermuda government is in contact with US authorities and families of the passengers, Bermuda Premier David Burt wrote in a statement posted on Instagram.

"We are praying that all six people will be found safe," he wrote.

Weather conditions in Nantucket were clear as of Saturday afternoon, according to AccuWeather.