During a news conference at Nome City Hall Friday afternoon, Lt. Cmdr. Mike Salerno said a Coast Guard helicopter lowered two rescuers onto the sea ice. They identified three people inside the aircraft, and the rest are presumed to also be within the wreckage.

A small commuter plane that crashed in western Alaska on its way to Nome has been found on sea ice, with all 10 people on board confirmed dead.

The Bering Air single-engine turboprop plane was traveling from Unalakleet on Thursday afternoon with nine passengers and a pilot. It lost contact about less than an hour after takeoff.