Nine crew members of the Navy are safe after their plane overshot the runway and crashed into the Kaneohe Bay in Hawaii on Monday.
NEW: A U.S. Navy P8-A Poseidon plane overshoots runway, landing in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.
The incident happened at 2 p.m. Hawaii Time, and the military aircraft is currently floating in the ocean.
All nine people on board the aircraft survived and swam to the shore.
The… pic.twitter.com/PTguegrDsw
— KanekoaTheGreat (@KanekoaTheGreat) November 21, 2023
The Honolulu Fire Department received a 911 call for a downed aircraft a little after 2 p.m., according to spokesperson Malcolm K. Medrano.
At the time, it was cloudy and rainy, with visibility about 1 mile out, wind gusts up to 21 miles per hour, and mist, stated Thomas Vaughan, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Honolulu.
The Marine base deployed firefighters, military police, and waterfront personnel to the scene. The Coast Guard also responded but was called off after receiving word that all nine crew members were rescued.
Gunnery sergeant Orlando Perez, a spokesperson for the U.S. Marines, said there was no information immediately available about what caused the P-8A aircraft to go off the runway at Marine Corps Base.
USMC Boeing P-8 Poseidon (169561, built 2020) was damaged when it overran the end of runway 22 at Kaneohe Bay Marine Corps Air Station (PHNG), Hawaii. The aircraft ended up in shallow waters. All 9 persons on board evacuated and made it safely ashore. At the time of the landing,… pic.twitter.com/awmjKKMNea
— JACDEC (@JacdecNew) November 21, 2023
Aircraft expert Peter Forman reported that there could have been many factors that contributed to the plane going down, including the weather.
“The pilot probably didn’t put the plane down exactly where he wanted to on the runway,” said Forman. “It’s probably a combination of all those factors put together.”
According to military officials, the crew was conducting “routine training” at the time of the incident.
Kaneohe Bay is located about 10 miles from Honolulu and is home to coral reefs, a breeding ground for hammerhead sharks, and a University of Hawaii marine biology research institute.
Residents expressed concern over the crash and the effect it would have on marine life.
“I think someone needs to take a look at the impact the plane is doing to our marine life. There is jet fuel, anti-freeze, and other toxins,” said Jon Karina.
The military blocked off the crash site with booms to hem in spilled fuel but has not shared an environmental impact assessment, or how long it will take personnel to remove the wreckage.
