Air ambulance missing on flight from Bermuda to Boston

An air ambulance carrying six people has been reported missing on a flight from Bermuda to Boston. The flight, operated by Canadian-registered Latitude Air Ambulance, left Bermuda’s LF Wade International Airport at 12:41 a.m. local time and was en route to Massachusetts when US Federal Aviation Administration officials told the US Coast Guard they had lost contact with the aircraft early on Saturday.

The Coast Guard said it dispatched both air and surface units to search in the waters near Nantucket, an island community south of mainland Massachusetts. Flight tracking data published by FlightAware showed the Gulfstream jet was cruising at 24,000 feet for much of the trip before it descended roughly 13,000 feet in about two minutes shortly before controllers lost communication.

Audio of the flight’s final communications posted on LiveATC.net captured an air traffic controller asking whether the pilot was "coming in blind," and later confirming that the pilot had declared an emergency. The pilot’s transmissions were not audible on the posted recording. The National Transportation Safety Board said it was collecting information about the event but had no additional update on Saturday morning.

Bermuda’s airport operator, Skyport, said the aircraft had four crew members and two passengers on board. Canada’s Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon posted that four Canadians were among those aboard and said Ottawa was monitoring the situation and working with relevant authorities. Bermuda’s premier David Burt said the government was in contact with US authorities and families and expressed hopes that the six people would be found safe.

Latitude Air Ambulance, based in Ontario and providing medical evacuation services, had not responded to requests for comment at the time of the reports. Search-and-rescue efforts were ongoing as US and allied agencies coordinated the response.