HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Extra particulars are rising in regards to the two Kamaka Air pilots who died in Tuesday’s aircraft crash close to Daniel Okay. Inouye Worldwide Airport.
Their identities have but to be formally launched, however family members shared their names with Hawaii Information Now: Hiram deFries-Saronitman, 24, and Preston Kaluhiwa, 26.
Each had been licensed industrial pilots. They had been headed to Lanai on a coaching flight when the aircraft crashed right into a vacant constructing.
Family members made their approach contained in the Kamaka Air hangar for a non-public vigil Wednesday. Many carried flowers, and a few wore their pilot uniforms.
Kamaka Airways staff inform HNN that Kaluhiwa had a few years of expertise flying with the corporate. Household added that he went to Ohio in 2023 to get a sophisticated pilot license to function multi-engine planes.
deFries-Saronitman was on his final coaching flight after months of coaching.
Kaluhiwa graduated in 2016 from Kamehameha Colleges, the place he was lively in sports activities, like kayaking.
Kamaka Air supervisor Kapahukulaokamamalu Chow went to high school with him on the Kapalama campus.
“He’s all the time been the cool, calm, collected man that he all the time is. He made an ideal pilot,” Chow mentioned.
deFries-Saronitman graduated from Punahou College, the place he was a soccer participant who performed within the Polynesian Bowl.
Punahou soccer head coach Nate Kia mentioned, “He was an incredible instance to plenty of younger gamers behind him, and nice help for his teammates. Each weekend we went to battle, and everyone remembers that.”
Kia describes deFries-Saronitman as “only a good man and his house was open to everyone. His household was terrific, an enormous a part of the Punahou soccer program. However yeah, only a actual heavy time.”
deFries-Saronitman was additionally mentioned to be a fluent speaker of Olelo Hawaii, and took courses on the College of Hawaii on the facet to review the language.
His longtime girlfriend, Naleo Faurot, instructed HNN, “To know him was to like him. He was essentially the most kind-hearted, selfless particular person who may carry a smile to anybody’s face.”
deFries-Saronitman and Kaluhiwa had been each killed when their Kamaka Air Cessna 208 Caravan misplaced management and crashed right into a three-story constructing on Aolele Avenue simply after 3 p.m. Tuesday.
Authorities say the boys had simply taken off from Runway 4L once they reported hassle to the tower.
The air visitors controller instructed them to land the cargo aircraft anyplace they might, however the plane instantly circled and plunged right into a vacant constructing on the sting of the commercial space.
Three Nationwide Transportation Security Board investigators are touring to the accident website and can doc the positioning and airplane wreckage.
The wreckage will then be moved to a safe facility for additional analysis.
Witnesses to the accident or those that have surveillance video or different info that may very well be related to the investigation are requested to contact the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov.
Primarily based in Hawaii and based in 1993, Kamaka Air operates as an inter-island airline and logistics firm that gives air cargo providers reminiscent of constitution service and per-pound service.
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