Search underway in Alaska for missing plane carrying 10 people

ANKARA

A search operation is ongoing in Alaska after a plane carrying 10 people failed to arrive in Nome as scheduled, local media reported on Thursday.

The Bering Air Caravan flight, traveling from Unalakleet to Nome, was reported overdue to Alaska State Troopers on Thursday at 4.00 pm local time, according to NBC News.

The plane had nine passengers and a pilot on board.

The Nome Volunteer Fire Department reported that weather conditions had limited air operations Thursday afternoon but confirmed an active ground search was underway.

The Coast Guard has deployed a C-130 aircraft equipped to detect people and objects under low visibility, flying a grid pattern over the search area.

Additional flight support is being provided by Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage.

Ground crews have been searching along the coast from Nome to Topkok, but the plane’s exact location remains unknown.

“We continue to expand search efforts to as many avenues as possible until the plane is located,” NBC quoted the fire department as saying.

The Coast Guard said the plane was last detected 12 miles (19 kilometers) offshore during its route to Nome.

White Mountain Fire Chief Jack Adams expressed hope that the aircraft had landed on land, as sea ice in the area poses a severe risk.

Unalakleet, a small coastal community, is 141 miles southeast of Nome, where search efforts are concentrated.