A passenger aboard a Cessna Grand Caravan that crashed into the Pacific Ocean last month, killing another passenger, has released dramatic video he shot from inside the cabin as the airplane went down.
The passenger, 39-year-old Ferdinand Puentes, was one of nine people on the flight that originated in Molokai, Hawaii, on December 11. The 2002 Caravan was headed for Honolulu but was forced to make an emergency landing after suffering what authorities say was likely an engine failure.
Passenger Jacob Key told KITV-TV that he heard a bang as the airplane climbed. Puentes says that afterward he saw that they were approaching the ocean quickly. Upon impact, a passenger opened the door and the cabin soon began filling with water. Everyone made it out of the airplane successfully, although 65-year-old passenger Loretta Fuddy, Hawaii’s State Health Director, later died of an irregular heartbeat.
One of the surviving passengers swam the 90-minute journey to shore, while the others waited in the choppy water for rescue personnel.
Aside from Fuddy, all other eight passengers survived the crash without serious injuries. Fuddy’s death sparked conspiracy theories, as she was the individual who made President Obama’s birth certificate public in 2011 amidst rumors over his place of birth.
Get exclusive online content like this delivered straight to your inbox by signing up for our free enewsletter.
We welcome your comments on flyingmag.com. In order to maintain a respectful environment, we ask that all comments be on-topic, respectful and spam-free. All comments made here are public and may be republished by Flying.
