Coast Guard Suspends Search for Six After Medical Flight Lost Near Nantucket

The US Coast Guard on Sunday suspended its search for six people who were aboard a medical transport flying from Bermuda to Boston after the aircraft went missing and debris was found off the coast of Massachusetts.

The missing flight has been described by some outlets as an air ambulance or medical transport. Authorities located a debris field near Nantucket later on the day the aircraft lost contact with ground controllers, according to multiple reports.

Accounts differ on whether the aircraft definitively crashed. The Guardian and Al Jazeera report that the plane crashed off the Massachusetts coast, while ABC News described the aircraft as having disappeared during the Bermuda-to-Boston flight. All three outlets say the Coast Guard later found debris near Nantucket.

According to the Guardian, the aircraft lost contact with ground authorities at about 2 a.m. on Saturday. The same report says the six people aboard are presumed dead after the Coast Guard suspended search operations on Sunday. ABC News and Al Jazeera likewise reported the suspension of the search and the discovery of debris, but did not use the phrase "presumed dead."

The incident has drawn attention because the aircraft was an air ambulance transporting patients or medical personnel between Bermuda and Boston, a routine but time-sensitive mission. The Coast Guard-led search and the discovery of debris near the island of Nantucket were reported on the day following the loss of contact.

No further details about the identities of those on board, the cause of the disappearance, or follow-up investigative steps were provided in the reports. The outlets did not report any official statements from federal investigative agencies in the material available.

The suspension of search operations leaves the six people unaccounted for, and reporting so far relies on the Coast Guard's decision to halt active searching after locating a debris field off Nantucket. Media accounts vary in wording about whether the plane definitively crashed, but they consistently note the loss of contact, the debris discovery, and the suspension of the search.