What we know about who was on board a missing Boston-bound jet
NANTUCKET, Mass. —
United States Coast Guard rescue crews are searching for a medical jet that was reported missing off the Massachusetts coast early Saturday.
The Gulfstream G-100 aircraft had six people on board and left L.F. Wade International Airport in Bermuda around 12:41 a.m.
The Federal Aviation Administration said it issued a search and rescue alert for the plane at 1:20 a.m
Who was on board?
A spokesperson from Skyport, the company who manages Wade International Airport in Bermuda, said that the aircraft involved was a Canadian-registered air ambulance.
The Canadian Minister of Transport, Steven MacKinnon, confirmed that several people on board were from Canada.
“Four Canadians are among the six people on board,” MacKinnon said. “My thoughts are with everyone on board, as well as their families, loved ones and colleagues during this incredibly difficult time. We are closely monitoring the situation and are working with the relevant authorities as search and rescue efforts continue.”
A local aviation expert said an air ambulance such as this would carry at least one doctor and nurse on board.
Rescue efforts
Since early Saturday, the Coast Guard’s response included multiple crews from Air Station Cape Cod.
The search is about 13 nautical miles off the coast of Nantucket and extends from about 30 nautical miles wide and 20 nautical miles long, according to authorities.
Assets also include:
- An HC-144 Ocean Sentry airplane crew from Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod
- HC-130 Hercules crew from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City
- An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod
- A 47-foot Motor Lifeboat crew from Coast Guard Station Brant Point
- Coast Guard Cutter William Sparling, a Boston-based Fast Response Cutter
These assets can search wide swaths of ocean in a short amount of time.
NewsCenter 5 sources said that the Massachusetts State Police Marine Unit is assisting with the search.
