The medical airplane with six people aboard left a runway in Bermuda late Friday and headed for Boston.
It never arrived. The airplane disappeared from radar as it flew south of Nantucket sometime after 1 a.m., prompting a massive land and air search for the aircraft and the six people aboard.
The plane was carrying a patient and family member as well as a four-person crew.
The crew members are Canadian citizens and the patient and family member are Berumdian nationals, according to Clarence Togeretz, operations manager for Latitude Air Ambulance, the company in Ontario that operates the Gulfstream G100.
In a statement, the Bermudian government said it was in touch with the families of the passengers and US search crews.
“We are praying that all six people will be found safe,” said Bermuda Premier David Burt.
The plane left L. F. Wade International Airport in Bermuda at 11:41 p.m. on Friday, said Ciara Eve, an airport spokesperson. Bermuda is one hour ahead of Eastern Daylight Time.
As the jet approached Nantucket at about 12:46 a.m. Saturday, the pilot struggled to communicate with air traffic control, reported electrical failures, and appeared to descend thousands of feet within three minutes, according to radio transmissions and data from the website FlightAware.
“You’re coming in blind? Is that what you said?,” the air traffic controller asked the pilot, according to a recording captured by LiveATC.net. “Are you declaring an emergency, or no?”
The pilot’s response was not audible.
“You’re coming in a little weak so I didn’t hear what your response was, if you were declaring an emergency or not,” the air traffic controller said. He later confirmed the pilot declared an emergency, but struggled to reestablish contact with the aircraft.
The air traffic controller asked the pilot of a second plane whether the Gulfstream G100 aircraft was visible on its anti-collision system. But the second plane was flying at a much higher altitude, and couldn’t pick up signs of jet, the pilot said.
For much of the flight, the Gulfstream jet traveled at about 24,000 feet, but at about 1:04 a.m., FlightAware data show the plane descended 13,000 feet within three minutes.
With the plane about 80 miles south of Nantucket at 1:06 a.m., a dispatcher at Logan International Airport directed crews to stage on the runway for the plane. She said it was due to land in 15 minutes and had lost “radio and radar,” according to radio transmissions captured by Broadcastify.
Emergency crews got into position and waited.
At 1:20 a.m., the Federal Aviation Administration issued an alert, an agency spokesperson said. The plane wouldn’t land at Logan, and a search and rescue mission had been launched.
On the runway at Logan, the Massport Fire Rescue commander heard a radio transmission reporting that air traffic control said it could no longer see the plane on the radar.
“I don’t know if you monitored the tower radio, but the tower lost radar contact with this aircraft,” the commander radioed at about 1:36 a.m.
“Received, I do have it. I was listening,” the dispatcher said.
Emergency crews on the runway were ordered back to their headquarters. At 2 a.m., the FAA alerted the US Coast Guard of the missing plane.
On Nantucket, police checked the island’s airport for the missing jet but found nothing, said Lieutenant Angus MacVicar.
At sunrise, officers and the harbormaster began combing Nantucket’s southern shoreline aboard ATVs in search of signs of the plane, he said.
Governor Maura Healey said Saturday her “thoughts and prayers go to to all on board and all involved.”
“We’ll do whatever we can as a state to support efforts there and work with the Coast Guard,” Healey said at a labor rally in Dorchester.
Coast Guard airplanes, plus a helicopter, cutter, and life boat circled Nantucket to look for the missing plane. As sunlight faded Saturday, there was no word on its location.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
Laura Crimaldi can be reached at laura.crimaldi@globe.com. Follow her @lauracrimaldi. Rita Chandler can be reached at rita.chandler@globe.com. John R. Ellement can be reached at john.ellement@globe.com. Follow him @JREbosglobe. Chris Van Buskirk can be reached at chris.vanb@globe.com. Follow him on X @byChrisVan