North Vancouver RCMP has confirmed that search and rescue crews have located a small debris field they believe belongs to Carson Air flight 66.

The Swearingin twin engine SA226 was a cargo plane with two pilots on board, a North Vancouver RCMP spokesperson was careful to stress that they are still treating it as a “search and RESCUE” operation.

The flight departed from Vancouver International Airport at 6:43am and lost contact with NavCanada over the North Shore Mountains at 7:10am Monday. It was scheduled to land in Prince George at 8am.

The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Victoria, North Vancouver RCMP and North Shore Search and Rescue have been conducting an extensive search of the North Shore Mountains throughout the day.

After battling rough terrain and limited visibility due top snow and rain, searchers located a small debris field and at 6pm RCMP say they activated the aerial extraction team to the airlifted in to protect the “continuity” of the crash scene until morning.

North Vancouver RCMP remain the lead investigating agency of the incident and will work with transport Canada to determine its cause.

The planes operator, Carson Air, focuses on cargo and air ambulance service.