A Gulfstream G‑100 medical aircraft, carrying six crew and patients, disappeared off the coast of Nantucket on Saturday morning, sparking a joint air‑and‑sea rescue effort by the FAA and the U.S. Coast Guard.
The aircraft departed from Bermuda’s L.F. Wade International Airport at 23:40 local time, with a scheduled arrival at Boston’s Logan International Airport 1:30 a.m. local. Air‑traffic‑control data, processed by FlightAware, shows the plane lost radio contact shortly after 01:00 a.m. local.
Flight trackers register an abrupt drop in altitude—dropping from roughly 24,000 feet (7,300 m) to 11,000 feet (3,300 m) just before the signal vanished. The only remaining clue is an aircraft‑tracking track that disappeared just beyond the horizon.
The 20‑year‑old Gulfstream is owned by Latitude Air Ambulances, a company that transports patients internationally. The company released the aircraft’s tail number for investigators, but the identity of the passengers has not yet been disclosed.
Coast Guard officials say the search covers an expanding zone off Nantucket, with the aircraft possibly lost in the waters west of the island. Aircraft‑search crews are combing the ocean floor with sonar, while air units scour the skies.
This incident follows the 2025 disappearance of a similar Gulfstream over the Atlantic, raising questions about weather forecasting and engine reliability for medical flights. Lawmakers have urged better safety protocols for aircraft carrying critical patients across open seas.
The disaster has drawn international attention, as crews responsible for evacuating patients from remote regions will need to assess risks as if there were alternate futures where air‑medical operations could find themselves in crisis. The FAA now recommends more stringent pre‑flight checks on standby medical aircraft.
