Authorities are conducting a search for a Bering Air plane that went missing on Thursday while flying from Unalakleet to Nome, Alaska. The aircraft, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX, was carrying 10 people, including nine passengers and a pilot, according to BBC.
The plane took off at 2:38 p.m. local time and was last tracked at 3:16 p.m., 38 minutes after takeoff.
Alaska State Troopers were notified of the overdue flight at 4:00 p.m. AST. The plane was on a routine flight that typically takes under an hour. It was about 12 miles offshore when it lost contact, and search and rescue crews are currently working to pinpoint the last known coordinates of the flight.
A specialized C-130 Coast Guard plane has joined the search, flying a grid pattern over the water and shoreline near Nome in an attempt to locate the aircraft.
Tracking data from FlightRadar24 shows the plane was flying at 5,300 feet when its position was last recorded, having covered more than 70% of the flight distance, Forbes reported.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is monitoring the situation. The aircraft was reported to be in communication with air traffic control before the disappearance, with the pilot indicating an intention to enter a holding pattern while waiting for the runway to be cleared at Nome.
The two cities of Unalakleet and Nome are located 146 miles apart, separated by the Norton Sound, an inlet of the Bering Sea. No further information about the passengers has been released at this time, and authorities continue to search for any signs of the missing plane.