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Crash Victims Planning to Fly Again

By: Stephen Florino

Their flight ended with a dramatic rescue at sea, but just one day later, a young couple plans to return to the air. They crashed in waters off Portlock, but surviving a plane crash doesn't scare away a visiting couple from taking to our skies, again.

The couple was back at George's Aviation to rent a plane Saturday. The owner says they did overcome what happened very quickly, and it's thanks to the man's preparation and training as a pilot.

Chopper-8 captures the action as rescue personnel pluck a man and woman from waters off Portlock after their plane goes down. The plane's owner says he knew the couple would be fine.

"I knew that Mike was a very, very experienced pilot," said George Hanzawa, owner of George's Aviation.

"After running over and seeing what safety equipment he had with him, I was certain Mike was qualified enough to handle any time of emergency circumstance," he said.

Because the sightseeing flight was going over water, the man took a life vest, life raft, flares and extra water. They all play a key part in the rescue.

"They were prepared in the event of an emergency and the emergency happened," said Hanzawa. "He handled it to a tee -- the way pilots are trained, it's a testament to his training."

The plane may have run out of fuel. Hanzawa says there is a gauge inside the plane, just like inside a car.

"You see people stalled on the freeway, ran out of gas, it can easily happen," he said. "You're flying out, you're bucking winds, you divert a little bit, and next thing you know, you could have a low fuel situation."

And there is a happy ending in this situation. But not for the couple's attempt to finish their sight-seeing tour of the islands.

"No, we didn't have a plane available," said Hanzawa. "Saturdays are very busy."

Hanzawa says at this time, there are no plans to recover the plane. It's now sitting about a thousand feet underwater.