Bering Air plane carrying 10 people vanishes over Alaska; rescue crews responding to 'item of interest'

A desperate search is underway Friday in Alaska for a plane carrying 10 people that vanished Thursday afternoon.

The flight, operated by Bering Air, was traveling from Unalakleet to Nome in Western Alaska, when its position was lost about 12 miles offshore, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Data from FlightRadar shows the Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX last reporting info at 3:16 p.m. over the Norton Sound.

The Coast Guard added that its last known position was transponded Thursday evening approximately 30 miles southeast of Nome. 

During a Friday news conference, the Coast Guard said that data showed a "rapid loss in elevation and rapid loss in speed" for the aircraft at 3:18 p.m. local time on Thursday. 

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The Coast Guard also said that an "item of interest" had been found, and an aircraft was flying over it to determine what it was. 

Officials at the news conference added that all passengers on the plane are adults, and it was a regularly scheduled flight. 

On Friday, the FBI said it was coming to Nome to assist with the U.S. Coast Guard currently leading the search and rescue efforts.  

"The FBI is aware of reports of a missing passenger plane near Nome, Alaska," the FBI Anchorage Office said. "The situation is active and ongoing, but the FBI is currently assisting partners with technical resources and support, to include cellular analysis. The FBI is ready to augment local, state, and federal resources if the situation develops that requires additional specialized capabilities. We remain in close contact with our local, state, and federal partners."

"The FBI [is] coming in to Nome to try and locate the group through cell phone tracking," said the Nome Volunteer Fire Department, which is also conducting a ground search along the coastline. "The plane has not communicated by Emergency Locator Transmitter."

Thursday night, it wrote on Facebook that "the pilot of the plane told Anchorage Air Traffic Control that he intended to enter a holding pattern while waiting for the runway to be cleared" in Nome.

The department said Friday that aerial searches carried out by C-130 Hercules planes from the National Guard and Air Force resulted in "no sightings" and that "all families of passengers on the missing flight have been notified."

"Please keep families in your thoughts at this time. Search efforts continue by air and land. The Coast Guard helicopter is actively canvassing the sea ice and shoreline, and the National Guard is spooling up to launch in the Black Hawk," it added.

The agency said on Friday that an update from the National Weather Service showed the weather looked stable for the next 24 hours for the search. 

"Bering Air launched two King Airs earlier today at first light to fly grid patterns to canvas the area," the agency said, adding that two helicopters were loading up to go before 11 a.m. local time and the Coast Guard was planning to drop a buoy to track ice movements. 

"The International Guard will help with searching in their helicopter," it added. "Search and Rescue groups from White Mountain and Nome continue to search by land in the surrounding area." 

Bering Air describes itself as a regional air service based out of Nome, with hubs in Kotzebue and Unalakleet. 

"We operate scheduled passenger and cargo flights seven days a week out of each hub to 32 communities along the northwest coast of Alaska," it said on its website.

The missing aircraft was carrying nine passengers and one pilot, according to the Alaska Department of Public Safety. 

"Staff at Bering Air is working hard to gather details, get emergency assistance, search and rescue going," David Olson, its director of operations, told the Associated Press.

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Norton Sound Health Corporation said it is "ready to respond to a community medical emergency," but did not give any other details. 

A National Transportation Safety Board investigator is also heading to Nome Friday, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

The temperature was 17 degrees in Unalakleet with light snow and fog during takeoff, the Associated Press reported, citing the National Weather Service.

"We are hearing reports of a possible missing plane en route to Nome. Our thoughts and prayers are with the passengers, their families and the rescue crew," Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, wrote on Facebook.

"Our prayers are with all those on the plane missing out of western Alaska, the Bering Air family, and the entire community of Nome," fellow Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski added.

Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy said "We are closely monitoring the ongoing search and rescue efforts and stand ready to support in any way we can."

The fire department said that a multi-faith prayer vigil would be held Friday evening at 7 p.m. at Old St. Joe's for "the community to gather in prayer for the passengers, the pilot, friends and family members, and for those involved in the search and rescue efforts." 

The missing plane comes after back-to-back fatal aviation incidents in the U.S. last week, including the collision between a military helicopter and a passenger jet near the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) and a Learjet 55 medevac jet that crashed in Philadelphia.