Alaska Rescue Crews Search desperately for missing flights by 10 on board: Updates

A large search and rescue effort was underway on Friday in Alaska after a small aircraft with ten people on board disappeared while on their way to a city on the west coast of the state, authorities said.

Turboprop Cessna Caravan, served by Bering Air, was reported missing around 10 p.m. 16 local time on Thursday, according to Alaska Department of Public Safety. Bearing nine passengers and a pilot flew the plane from Unalakleet, Alaska, to the town of Nome when its position was lost 12 miles offshore, According to the US Coast Guard.

Before the aircraft was reported missing, Nome Volunteer Four Department said the pilot had told Anchorage Air Traffic Control that “he intended to get into a team pattern while waiting for the runway to be cleared.”

The fire department said the crews performed land searches along the west coast of the state, from the cities of Nome to White Mountain. The National Guard helped with the efforts, and a US Coast Guard aircraft crew was expected to search the aircraft’s last known location.

Bering Air serves dozens of local communities in western Alaska and is headquartered in Nome.

Hours into the search has the authorities ‘found nothing’

Nome Volunteer Fire Department said in a Facebook post early Friday morning that the crews were still searching on the ground and canvassing as much area as possible.

“The National Guard C-130 reported that they did not find anything found so far,” read the statement that was sent just after midnight, local time. The department added that the air defense has so far “reported no visuals” and had “one hour of flight time back.”

The department said: “If nothing is reported any further, the next update will be at 9”

‘We ask the public to think of those who may be missing’

Nome Volunteer Fire Department has asked the public not to form individual search parties with reference to bad weather conditions and security concerns.

“We ask the public to think of those who may be missing at this time,” said the fire department. “Families are encouraged to seek support from Norton Sound Health Corporation.”

Alaska US Senator Dan Sullivan said in a statement that he monitored the search for the missing aircraft and prayed for those affected.

“We hear reports of a possible missing aircraft on the way to Nome. Our thoughts and prayers are with the passengers, their families and the rescue herd.”

US Senator Lisa Murkowski said in a post on X, “Our prayers are with all those on the plane missing out on western Alaska, the Bering Air family and the entire Nome community.”

There occur disproportionate number of aircraft accidents in Alaska

According to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, a disproportionate number of air taxi and commuter flights in Alaska occur compared to other US states.

Alaska is known for its mountainous terrain and challenging weather. Many Alaskan villages are not associated with roads, which means that small aircraft are generally used to transport people and goods.

Bering Air is an Alaska-based regional airline operating about 39 aircraft and helicopters, according to data from the flight tracking site Flightradar24. Earlier Thursday night the fire department said Elmendorf Air Force Base In Anchorage, Flykupport also sent.

Latest aviation event in the United States

Thursday’s incident is the latest aviation event that occurs in the United States in recent weeks, including two deadly crashes in late January. Several other events have recently taken place at major airports in Chicago, Seattle and Houston, USA Today reported earlier.

Saturday an airport worker was critically wounded after a passenger plane hit a tug on Chicago O’Hare International Airport. The next day, a United Airlines flight from Houston to New York City was evacuated after a motor problem was reported.

Wednesday morning a parked delta -air line plan was hit by a taxi -airline aircraft on Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. No damage to the incident was reported.

On January 29, an American Airlines passenger aircraft and an army helicopter near Washington, DC, collided, killing 67 people in the deadliest air disaster for more than two decades. Just days later, a Medevac jet crashed into a busy neighborhood in Philadelphia, killed seven people and wounded over 20 others.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

Contributing: Reuters

This article originally appeared on the US today: Alaska Rescue Crews Search for missing flights by 10 aboard: Updates