Bering Air plane carrying 10 people goes missing over Alaska

A Bering Air flight carrying 10 people has disappeared from radar near Nome in Alaska, according to local officials. A search and rescue operation has been launched.

Bering Air Flight 445, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan, disappeared on Thursday afternoon while it was flying over the Bering Sea on a route from Unalakleet to Nome, a city some 530 miles northwest of Anchorage.

Alaska State Troopers said the missing aircraft was carrying 10 people, including 9 passengers and 1 pilot.

The plane had taken off from Unalakleet at 2:37 p.m. and was last seen over the Norton Sound area of the Bering Sea at 3:16 p.m., about 12 miles offshore, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. A search was launched at around 4 p.m.

“We are currently responding to a report of a missing Bering Air Caravan,” the Nome Volunteer Fire Department said. “We are conducting an active ground search from Nome and White Mountain and are gathering the most up-to-date information on the incident.”

The cause of the disappearance is currently unknown but bad weather has been reported in the area.

“Due to weather and visibility, we are limited in our ability to conduct an aerial search at this time,” the Nome Fire Department said. “We ask the public to keep those who may be missing in their thoughts, but for safety reasons, please do not form independent search parties.”

The U.S. Coast Guard has sent a C-130 aircraft to search the area, while the U.S. Air Force is deploying air support from Elmendorf Air Force Base, the fire department confirmed in an update. Ground crews are also actively searching the area.