Coast Guard finds debris from missing medical transport plane off Nantucket, search for 6 continues
The U.S. Coast Guard said Saturday it has located debris from a missing medical transport plane and will continue searching the waters off Massachusetts through the night for the six people who were aboard.
The debris field was located off Nantucket, the Coast Guard said, and was confirmed to be linked to the missing Gulfstream G-100.
The Federal Aviation Administration informed the Coast Guard that air traffic controllers lost contact with the flight around 2 a.m. Saturday, as the plane flew from Bermuda to Boston, according to the Coast Guard.
There were four Canadians and two Bermudans aboard.
The Bermuda Skyport Corporation, which operates LF Wade International Airport, said in a statement that the Canadian-registered plane took off from the airport with four crew members and two passengers at around 12:41 a.m. on Saturday.
The Air Ambulance jet was in contact with New York controllers when it declared an emergency, according to air traffic audio obtained by ABC News.
The controller was having trouble hearing the pilots and asked them to repeat their messages, including altitude, several times, according to the audio.
When the air ambulance stopped responding, the controller had a nearby Ethiopian Airlines jet try and reach them, but there was still no response, according to the audio.
Throughout the day Saturday, the Coast Guard used air and sea vehicles to search around Nantucket, the agency said.
The agency said in an update Saturday night the Coast Guard Cutter William Sparling would continue the search efforts through the night and the Coast Guard would hold a press conference on Sunday to provide an update on the search.
Officials believe the plane rapidly descended 7,500 feet before hitting the water, a source with knowledge of the investigation told ABC News.
ABC News' Luke Barr and Sam Sweeney contributed to this report.
