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A CC-130H Hercules has been sent from Winnipeg to aid in the search.

Kananaskis, Cochrane and Canmore RCMP are responding to an eyewitness report of a plane crash in Kananaskis Country, near Rae Glacier.

David Lavellee, a spokesperson for the Royal Canadian Air Force, confirmed the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre received a mayday call on Wednesday afternoon (Aug. 1), followed by the activation of an emergency beacon in the Mount Rae, which is 100 km south-east of Canmore on Highway 40.

He said a CC-130H Hercules aircraft was dispatched from Winnipeg to help with the search and rescue. “The last I heard the status of the aircraft is not known, but these situations evolve rapidly so this is simply the latest information I have,” said Lavellee.

Further details about the crash remain vague, however, Chris Krepski, a spokesperson for the Transportation Safety Board, also confirmed his organization is aware of the occurrence. “At this point the RCMP is responding and we’re waiting for information from them to determine what the next steps will be,” said Krepski.

He said it was too early to provide any further details as it is still in the search and rescue stage. “Once we receive more information from first responders then we will know what our next steps will be.”

Kananaskis Emergency Services, Fire and EMS are also en route to the suspected crash.