Key Takeaways
- A Canadian Gulfstream G100 air ambulance carrying six people went missing while flying from Bermuda to Boston.
- Four Canadians were among the six people aboard, which included four crew members and two passengers.
- The U.S. Coast Guard is searching waters off Nantucket after an emergency declaration and loss of communications.
A Canadian-registered air ambulance carrying six people has gone missing over the Atlantic while flying from Bermuda to Boston, triggering a major U.S. Coast Guard search off Nantucket, Massachusetts.
The missing aircraft is a Gulfstream G100, tail number C-GRJP, operated by Hamilton, Ontario-based Latitude Air Ambulance.
Four Canadians are among the six people aboard.
The aircraft was conducting a medical transfer when communication with air traffic control was lost early Saturday morning.
Medical Flight Left Bermuda for Boston
The air ambulance departed L.F. Wade International Airport in Bermuda at approximately 12:41 a.m. Bermuda time on October 3.
Its destination was Boston Logan International Airport.
There were six people aboard: four crew members and two passengers.
Bermuda authorities said the aircraft was carrying a patient as part of an air-ambulance operation.
The flight never arrived in Boston.
Contact Lost Near Nantucket
The U.S. Coast Guard said the Federal Aviation Administration notified its command centre at approximately 2 a.m. that contact with the Gulfstream G100 had been lost.
Authorities subsequently concentrated the search in Atlantic waters off Nantucket, Massachusetts.
The Coast Guard has not announced a confirmed crash site.
That distinction is important: the aircraft is officially missing and search-and-rescue operations are underway.
Aircraft Declared an Emergency
Before contact was lost, the aircraft encountered a serious problem during the flight.
Air-traffic-control communications indicate the crew was having difficulty communicating with controllers and an emergency was declared.
At one point, a controller attempted to clarify what the crew was reporting, asking:
“You’re coming in blind, is that what you said?”
Controllers also indicated that the aircraft's radio transmission was coming through weakly.
Reports surrounding the ATC communications indicate the crew was experiencing electrical problems, potentially affecting navigation equipment.
Shortly afterward, communication with the aircraft was lost.
The cause of the disappearance, however, has not been officially determined.
Four Canadians Among Six People Aboard
Canada's Minister of Transport, Steven MacKinnon, confirmed that four Canadians are among the six people aboard the aircraft.
Bermuda airport authorities confirmed there were four crew members and two passengers aboard when the aircraft departed.
Bermuda's government said it has been communicating with the families of those aboard as well as authorities overseas coordinating the search.
Bermuda Premier David Burt said the government was praying that all six people would be found safe.
Massive Air-and-Sea Search Underway
The U.S. Coast Guard has deployed several aircraft, vessels and specialized search crews around Nantucket.
Resources involved include an HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft, HC-130 Hercules, MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter, 47-foot Motor Lifeboat and the Coast Guard Cutter William Sparling.
Crews are searching from both the air and the water.
The Coast Guard said the operation would continue as authorities attempt to determine what happened to the aircraft and locate the six people aboard.
What We Know So Far
The confirmed picture remains limited but increasingly concerning.
A Canadian Gulfstream G100 air ambulance left Bermuda carrying six people.
It was heading toward Boston.
An emergency was declared during the flight.
Communication became difficult.
Contact was subsequently lost near Nantucket.
And hours later, Coast Guard aircraft, helicopters and vessels were still searching the Atlantic.
No confirmed crash site had been announced at the time of publication.
TwikUp Insight
The final minutes of the flight will likely become one of the most important parts of the investigation if the aircraft is located.
The combination of an emergency declaration, reported communication difficulties and the subsequent loss of contact gives investigators several questions to answer — but it does not yet establish what caused the aircraft to disappear.
Until authorities locate the Gulfstream, claims that it definitively crashed or identifying an exact crash location would go beyond what officials have confirmed.
For now, this remains an active search-and-rescue operation involving six missing people, including four Canadians.