Search Underway for Missing Air Ambulance Jet Off Nantucket
The U.S. Coast Guard is searching off Nantucket, Massachusetts, for a Canadian air ambulance jet that went missing early Saturday, October 3, while flying from Bermuda to Boston. Six people were aboard: two Canadian pilots, two Canadian medical staff, a patient and the patient’s relative. The nationalities of the patient and relative were not disclosed, but the airline said neither is Canadian.
The Gulfstream G100, registered as C-GRJP, belongs to Latitude Air Ambulance, which operates from Hamilton, Ontario. It departed Bermuda’s L.F. Wade International Airport and was scheduled to land at Boston Logan International Airport. Latitude’s director of flight operations, Clarence Togeretz, said the company lost contact with the aircraft at about 1:30 a.m. as it approached Boston.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said it issued a search-and-rescue alert at 1:20 a.m. and is coordinating with rescue authorities and the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard said five teams were assisting, including airplane and helicopter crews from Cape Cod, a motor lifeboat from Brant Point and a patrol ship. Nantucket Memorial Airport said it had been told the aircraft reportedly declared an emergency before contact was lost. The circumstances remain unconfirmed, and officials have not identified a cause.
Flight-tracking data cited by CBC News showed the jet descending from about 7,300 metres to 3,400 metres shortly before 1 a.m., then stabilizing. That information does not establish what happened afterward.
Canadian officials said they were monitoring the search and communicating with U.S. authorities. Bermuda’s government said it was in contact with families and officials coordinating the response. Canada’s Transportation Safety Board is gathering information to assess the incident. Ontario air ambulance service Ornge said the flight was not part of its operations or an Ontario air ambulance transport. Latitude said it had flown to Bermuda to collect the patient and relative.