Dubbed the ‘Bermuda Triangle of Alaska’, the spooky area is a hotspot for unexplained phenomena, including strange disappearances, UFO sightings and even paranormal activity
A plane at the centre of an urgent search operation in Alaska has vanished in an area notorious for its mysterious disappearances – with a staggering 20,000 people having gone missing there since 1970.
Dubbed the ‘Bermuda Triangle of Alaska’, the Alaskan Triangle is a hotspot for unexplained phenomena, including strange disappearances, UFO sightings and even paranormal activity. It has once again made headlines – this time for the mysterious disappearance of a Bering Air flight containing nine passengers and a pilot.
A desperate search is ongoing to track down the small aircraft, which vanished overnight, with search teams facing almost white-out conditions. It is believed to have gone off the radar in or around the Alaskan Triangle – a large remote region of land between Anchorage, Juneau and Utqiagvik.
The triangle is home to some of North America’s harshest wilderness, and its sparse population has only added to its eerie reputation. According to a 2022 report by The History Channel, 20,000 people have vanished in the area since the 1970s.
In 1972, House Majority Leader Hale Boggs and Congressman Nick Begich vanished while flying from Anchorage to Juneau. Despite a major search and rescue mission, no bodies – or even a wreckage has ever been found. The Bering flight that is currently missing was travelling to Nome from Unalakleet on Thursday night – and its last known contact was with Anchorage Air Traffic Control.
Researcher Ken Gerhard told the History Channel in a programme on the Alaskan Triangle: “What I found when I was doing my research in the Alaskan Triangle, was that a number of these missing person cases legitimately could not be solved. This wasn’t just a case of someone being mauled by a bear or falling into a crevasse, I mean, these were often people that were going about their daily lives. ‘They weren’t out on some grand adventure and yet ultimately, they disappeared for no good reason.”
Another notable case involved 25-year-old New Yorker Gary Frank Sotherden, who went to the Alaskan wilderness in the mid-1970s for a hunting trip and never returned. It wasn’t until 1997 that a human skull was discovered along the Porcupine River in northeastern Alaska. DNA testing in 2022 confirmed that the skull belonged to Sotherden, with the likely cause of death being a bear mauling.
More recently, in June 2019, Shanna Oman, 43, was visiting a friend in Fairbanks when she disappeared. She didn’t show up for the lift she’d arranged with a friend and never returned home. Canine units and helicopters were used in a search lasting several days, but she was never found.
The Alaska National Guard said in an X post on Friday morning that whilst searching for the missing Bering Air Caravan, a HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter was forced to turn around due to severe weather. “Due to bad weather, the HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter had to turn back before arriving at the search area”, the message said.
Across the state of Alaska, there have been a total of 2,257 aircraft crashes – an average of 112 per year. Earlier, the Nome Volunteer Fire Department said in a statement: “We are currently responding to a report of a missing Bering Air caravan.
“We are doing an active ground search from Nome and from White Mountain. Due to weather and visibility, we are limited on air search at the current time. National Guard and Coast Guard and Troopers have been notified and are active in the search. Norton Sound Health Corporation is standing by.”
The flight was overdue at its final destination in Nome, in Alaska, from Unalakleet in the same state.