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Two Mokulele Airlines
pilots were recognized Wednesday for their heroics that saved two other
pilots who crashed into the ocean near Lanai.
Just before sunset on Feb. 27, Mokulele Airlines Capt. Justin Constantino and First Officer Jeremy Delia had left Lanai en route to Honolulu in a Cessna 208 aircraft with six passengers when they received a “mayday” distress call from another aircraft.
The pilots recalled the experience after a Wednesday afternoon ceremony at the Mokulele terminal on the outskirts of Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu.
They were being celebrated for their actions that day.
Constantino and Delia told air traffic control they were leaving their route to assist with the distressed aircraft. They saw the plane — occupied by flight instructor Andrew Liong and student pilot Damien Lorentz — crash into the water after its engine died.
“Once I spotted them, I slowed down to keep them in sight,” Constantino said. “We witnessed them crash in the water.”
The Mokulele Airlines pilots circled the downed aircraft, keeping an eye on Liong and Lorentz, who escaped the plane and were holding onto each other’s arms in the rough waters.
“The conditions couldn’t have been any worse, honestly,” Delia said. “The winds and the oceans were just rough. There were 40 mile-an-hour winds. … Our passengers were in for quite the ride.”
Constantino and Delia asked the passengers on board to also keep watch on the downed pilots. After about 40 minutes circling above, they had to leave for Honolulu to refuel, but were relieved by a Kamaka Caravan aircraft.
Liong and Lorentz were soon rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard, which Lorentz said located them quickly because the Mokulele Airlines crew flying above was able to keep them as a point of reference.
The two rescued pilots were also present during Wednesday’s ceremony, and Lorentz said if it weren’t for Constantino and Delia, they would’ve been stuck in the water overnight instead of just two hours.
“Had it not been for those Mokulele pilots … I know we would have been in the water all night long. I don’t know how we would have survived it, because the waves were just so big and choppy and kind of just tossing us all over the place,” he said.
He also credited Liong for smoothly ditching the aircraft into the ocean, saying, “He’s the reason I’m still alive today.”
Wednesday’s ceremony was attended by a couple of dozen people, during which Constantino and Delia were recognized by company leaders and local elected officials.
Stan Little, CEO of Southern Airways Corp., which acquired Mokulele Airlines in February 2019, at one point held back tears while talking about the incident. Rep. Lynn DeCoite (D, Lanai-Molokai-Paia-Hana) was present and also thanked the two pilots.
The Federal Aviation
Administration issued a special proclamation to honor Constantino and
Delia, and one of their passengers during that Feb. 27 flight — a business executive who was on his honeymoon — gave each of them with Rolex Aviator wristwatches.
Wednesday’s ceremony was the first time the pilots had met each other. After the ceremony they took photos together and talked.
“I felt relieved. Just hearing that they made it out was a good sign, but actually seeing them physically, in person, just made it a lot better,” Constantino said.
Lorentz, who has been flying for 1-1/2 years, said he was working on another certification, and said February’s experience hasn’t deterred him from flying.
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