Missing plane found crashed on Alaska sea ice

The Coast Guard said the aircraft went missing about 48 kilometers southeast of Nome. Pic/PTI

A small commuter plane that crashed in western Alaska on its way to the hub community of Nome was located Friday on sea ice, and all 10 people on board were dead, authorities said. The crash was one of the deadliest in the state in the last 25 years. Rescuers were searching the aircraft's last known location by helicopter when the wreckage was spotted, said Mike Salerno, a spokesperson for the US Coast Guard. Two rescue swimmers were lowered to investigate.

The Bering Air single-engine turboprop plane was traveling from Unalakleet on Thursday afternoon with nine passengers and a pilot, Alaska's Department of Public Safety said. It was operating at its maximum passenger capacity, according to the airline's description of the plane.

The Coast Guard said the aircraft went missing about 48 kilometres southeast of Nome. Nome, a Gold Rush town, is just south of the Arctic Circle and is known as the ending point of the 1,610-kilometer Iditarod. All 10 people on board the plane were adults, and the flight was a regularly scheduled commuter trip, according to Lt. Ben Endres of the Alaska State Troopers.

Two people who died in the crash were on a work trip for a non-profit tribal health organization, according to Alaska's News Source. The other people's names have not been released. The plane's crash marks the third major US aviation mishap in eight days.

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