A plane carrying 10 people went missing over Alaska, prompting a search and rescue operation, officials said.
The Alaska Department of Public Safety reported that the aircraft, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan operated by Bering Air, disappeared while flying from Unalakleet to Nome on Thursday at around 4 pm local time. It had nine passengers and one pilot on board.
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Flight records indicate that the plane departed Unalakleet at 2.37pm and last transmitted data at 3.16pm over the Norton Sound area, according to KTUU. Search teams are working to reach the last known coordinates.
The Nome Volunteer Fire Department reported conducting a ground search from Nome and White Mountain. Due to poor weather and visibility, air searches were limited, and residents were advised not to form their own search parties, officials said.
The incident follows a deadly week in aviation, with a plane crash in Philadelphia killing four and a mid-air collision between a military aircraft and a jet in Washington, DC, claiming 67 lives.
Unalakleet, a community of around 690 people, is located in western Alaska, approximately 150 miles southeast of Nome and 395 miles northwest of Anchorage. Nome, located just south of the Arctic Circle, is known as the end point of the 1,000-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.
