Pilots rescued after Boeing 737 cargo jet makes emergency landing in ocean off Oahu

A Boeing 737 cargo jet with two crew members on board made an emergency landing in the ocean off the Hawaiian island of Oahu early Friday. The pilots were rescued by Coast Guard and local fire department helicopters.

Transair Flight 810 lost one of its engines shortly after leaving Honolulu Airport, and the pilots tried to turn back. But the 45-year-old jet lost altitude and splashed down in the Pacific about two miles off the coast by Kalaeloa Airport at 1:30 a.m. local time, according to the Federal Aviation Administration and flight tracking data.

“Our situation: We’ve lost number 1 engine and we’re coming straight to the airport,” one of the pilots told an air traffic controller, according to radio communications captured by the website LiveATC.net. “We’re going to need the fire department. There’s a chance we’re going to lose the other engine too. It’s running very hot.”

Moments later, the controller warned the pilots that the plane was dropping: “Low altitude alert. Low altitude alert. Are you able to climb at all?”

“No. Negative,” the second pilot responded.

“Roger,” the controller said. “Proceed direct to the airport. And you are cleared to land. Any runway.”

The tracking data, published by Flightradar24, shows the plane looping back toward Honolulu. But the pilots indicated to the controller that they were not sure they would be able to make it.

“Can you let the Coast Guard know?” the first pilot said. “We cannot maintain altitude.”

The controller told the pilots that they could try to reach Kalaeloa instead, but they lost contact with the plane and can then be heard on the recording saying it was in the water.

Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew West, a Coast Guard spokesman, said a helicopter, a large search and rescue plane, the cutter Joseph Gerczak and a small boat were sent to help with the rescue. He said the rescued pilots were taken to the Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the incident. Boeing said it was working with the NTSB.

Transair could not immediately be reached for comment. The airline has been in business since 1982 and operates cargo flights between the Hawaiian islands. Flight 810 was bound for Kahului Airport on Maui.

“We are proud of our unblemished record in providing the longest running All Cargo operation in the State of Hawaii,” Transair says on its website.

The plane was a 737-200, part of the first generation of 737s developed in the 1960s.