Medical service returns to the skies
All pilots and one plane of Hawaii Air Ambulance get OK
Hawaii Air Ambulance announced it is flying interisland medical missions aboard its own aircraft again, the first time since the March 8 crash on Maui that killed three of its employees.
An inspection found nothing out of the ordinary on the aircraft, and the Federal Aviation Administration has cleared all Hawaii Air Ambulance pilots to fly, the company said yesterday.
The air ambulance has three other airplanes undergoing inspection.
"Our pilots, medical staff and crews are happy to have a Hawaii Air Ambulance plane in the air again and eager to continue full aeromedical service once all of our planes have completed the voluntary inspections," said Andrew Kluger, the company's chief executive and chairman.
Kluger said Hawaii Air Ambulance, which has been in operation for 27 years, remains committed to helping others and honoring the memory of the three who died recently.
"We consider our work to be a calling to help others," he said.
On the day after the crash, Hawaii Air Ambulance decided to ground its four remaining twin-engine Cessna 414A aircraft and put them through voluntary inspections.
Hawaii Air Ambulance said the inspections are being done by an outside company and are taking much longer than anticipated.
Until the remaining inspections are completed, Hawaii Air Ambulance crews will fly the one inspected aircraft while continuing to have its staff fly as volunteers with the U.S. Coast Guard, it said.
Hawaii Air Ambulance nurses will also continue to escort noncritical patients aboard commercial and chartered flights, it said.
Last year, the company flew an average of 200 missions monthly.
The Cessna 414A crashed at 7:18 p.m. in a BMW Maui parking lot, about a mile west of the Kahului Airport.
Witnesses said they saw the twin-engine aircraft maneuvering low between 100 and 300 feet and the wings wobbling at times, according to a preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board.
Killed in the crash were pilot Peter Miller, 32; nurse Brien Eisaman, 37; and paramedic Marlena Yomes, 39.