Alaska: A small regional flight carrying nine passengers and a pilot that went missing in Alaska has been located, but unfortunately, all on board are deceased, confirmed the US Coast Guard on Friday, according to CNN.
The commuter aircraft was found approximately 34 miles southeast of Nome, as reported by the USCG. Lt Commander Mike Salerno stated that two rescue swimmers discovered three bodies inside the plane, while the remaining seven individuals are believed to be trapped in the wreckage, which is currently inaccessible.
The Cessna, operated by Bering Air, was en route from Unalakleet to Nome when it disappeared Thursday afternoon. The aircraft lost communication about 12 miles offshore, experiencing a sudden drop in altitude and speed around 3:18 PM local time, as detailed by Coast Guard Lt. Commander Benjamin McIntyre-Coble.
The Coast Guard announced on X that the search for the missing plane has concluded after its discovery. They expressed condolences to those affected by this tragic event, noting that the search was complicated by the aircraft’s failure to activate its emergency transmitter. Adverse weather conditions also hampered rescue efforts on Thursday, with initial search flights yielding no results, according to the Nome Volunteer Fire Department.
Before the plane was found, McIntyre-Coble mentioned that a search aircraft had identified a potential point of interest. The fire department confirmed that all families of the passengers had been notified, though no names have been released. All individuals on board were adults, as stated by Lt. Ben Endres of the Alaska State Troopers.
The incident raises concerns about air safety in the US, especially following two recent deadly incidents: a midair collision on January 29 involving a military Black Hawk helicopter and a passenger jet near Washington, DC, which resulted in 67 fatalities, and a medevac jet crash in Philadelphia on January 31 that claimed seven lives.
Additionally, the fire department noted that the aircraft did not send out any signals from its emergency locator transmitter, a device designed to broadcast distress signals to assist in locating downed planes. McIntyre-Coble remarked that it remains unclear why the emergency locator transmitter did not activate. The FBI is also aiding in the search by using technical resources to geolocate the cell phones of the passengers, with trained personnel analyzing cellular data to pinpoint the last known locations.