All six people aboard a medical flight that vanished off the Massachusetts coast are now presumed dead after the Coast Guard found wreckage and ended its search.
The Gulfstream G100, operated by Latitude Air Ambulance, was carrying four crew members, one patient and one family escort when it disappeared early Saturday during a transfer from Bermuda to Boston. The aircraft left L.F. Wade International Airport at 12:41 a.m. Local time and was scheduled to land at Boston Logan International Airport at 1:25 a.m.
FlightAware data showed the plane dropped from 23,500 feet to 11,000 feet in just three minutes starting at 1:04 a.m. Contact with the Federal Aviation Administration was lost before the scheduled arrival. The Coast Guard was alerted around 2 a.m. And deployed search and rescue teams to waters off Nantucket island.
Officials later located a debris field confirmed to be associated with the missing aircraft. On Sunday evening, the Coast Guard announced it was suspending its search for survivors.
“We must now face the heartbreaking reality that the four members of our Latitude team, our patient and the patient’s family escort, who were aboard Heartbeat 104, are presumed to have died,” Latitude Air Ambulance said in a statement.
The company added: “Our thoughts are first and foremost with their families, loved ones, friends, and colleagues.”
Peter Byl, President of Latitude Air Ambulance, called the loss “unimaginable” for the company and those connected to the six victims. He said their focus had shifted to “supporting their families, supporting our people and assisting the authorities.”
“We will honour our colleagues by remembering the care, professionalism, and commitment they brought to their work every day,” he continued.
The six victims included two Bermudian nationals and four Canadian nationals. Canada’s minister of transport, Steve MacKinnon, addressed the tragedy on X, formerly known as Twitter, on October 3.
“Four Canadians are among the six people on board,” MacKinnon wrote. “My thoughts are with everyone on board, as well as their families, loved ones and colleagues during this incredibly difficult time.”
He added that Canadian officials were “closely monitoring the situation and are working with the relevant authorities as search and rescue efforts continue,” and thanked “all first responders involved for their ongoing efforts.”
The final communications between the pilot and air traffic controllers, captured by LiveATC.net and reported by The Boston Globe, revealed growing concern in the cockpit. Around 12:46 a.m., a controller asked the pilot: “You’re coming in blind? Is that what you said?”
The controller then questioned: “Are you declaring an emergency, or no?”
When no clear response came back, the controller tried again. “You’re coming in a little weak so I didn’t hear what your response was, if you were declaring an emergency or not,” he said.
The controller later confirmed that the pilot had indeed declared an emergency, though the pilot’s direct response remained inaudible on the recording.