Flight with 6 aboard takes off from Bermuda, goes missing en route to Boston

A medical transfer jet carrying six people vanished while flying from Bermuda to Boston. US authorities have launched an air and sea search near Nantucket as investigators examine its sudden loss of altitude.Plane carrying 6 disappears off Nantucket, Coast Guard mounts air-sea search (File Photo: Reuters)A medical transfer aircraft carrying six people has disappeared off the US coast after losing contact while flying from Bermuda to Boston, prompting the Coast Guard to launch an air and sea search near Nantucket, New York Post reported.The Gulfstream G100 was operating from L F Wade International Airport in Bermuda to Boston Logan International Airport when contact was lost early Saturday, October 3, according to the Federal Aviation Administration and the US Coast Guard.The aircraft took off at 12:41 am (ET) and was scheduled to land in Boston at 1:25 am (ET).According to FlightAware data, the aircraft was flying at 23,500 feet before plunging to 11,000 feet in just three minutes from around 1:04 am (ET). Its final radar ping was recorded at 1:23 am (ET), shortly before its scheduled arrival in Boston.The FAA issued a Search and Rescue Alert Notice for the Gulfstream G100 at around 1:20 am local time on Saturday, October 3. "The flight departed from L F Wade International Airport in Bermuda and was headed to Boston Logan International Airport. Six people were on board," an FAA spokesperson said.The FAA is coordinating with the Rescue Coordination Center and the US Coast Guard to locate the aircraft.The Coast Guard was alerted by the FAA at approximately 2 am (ET).The current search area is offshore of Nantucket, where Coast Guard aircraft and vessels are operating.Two Coast Guard aircraft were conducting a search just south of Nantucket, according to FlightRadar24.The Coast Guard said its response includes HC-144 and MH-60 aircraft from Air Station Cape Cod, a 47-foot Motor Lifeboat from Station Brant Point and a Fast Response Cutter from the USCGC William Sparling."The current search area is offshore of Nantucket. Coast Guard, air and surface crews are actively responding," the agency said.The Coast Guard said the search would continue and that further information would be provided as it becomes available.The circumstances surrounding the aircraft's disappearance, including the reason for the sharp drop in altitude before the final radar contact, remain under investigation.- Ends