A Boeing 737 cargo jet made an emergency nighttime landing in open water off the Hawaii coast early Friday and both pilots were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard, the Federal Aviation Administration confirmed.
Aviation tracking websites Flightaware.com and Flightradar24.com identified the plane as a 737-200 cargo jet operated by Transair, an interisland operator of scheduled and cargo flights.
Transair is the brand name for Rhoades Aviation Inc. It has a fleet of five 737 and five Bombardier SD3-60-300 aircraft that fly daily to Kauai, Maui, Kona and Hilo with extended service to Lanai and Molokai, according to its website.
The pilots reported they were having engine trouble and were attempting to return to Honolulu before ditching the plane in the early-morning hours. The flight was en route to Maui. One of the pilots was in critical condition at Queens Medical Center and the other was taken to a fire station for observations, ABC News reported.
The plane was built by Boeing in 1975 and joined Transair in 2014, according to Flightradar24.com.
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the cause of the accident.
In February, Transair placed an order with Miami-based Aeronautical Engineers Inc. to convert a 737-400 passenger plane into a freighter. The reconstruction was scheduled to begin in June.
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