Authorities identify 2 victims killed in motorized glider crash on Oahu’s North Shore
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The Medical Examiner’s Office on Monday identified the two victims who were killed in a motorized glider crash on Oahu’s North Shore.
They have been identified as 17-year-old AJ Lazear of Flower Mound, Texas and 58-year-old Marc Hill, of Waialua.
Meanwhile, National Transportation Safety Board investigators arrived on Oahu on Monday to assess the crash, which happened Saturday around 8:15 a.m. at Kaena Point State Park.
Both Lazear and Hill were pronounced dead at the scene.
Hawaii News Now has learned that Lazear and his family were on vacation from Texas at the time. His family said he was a passenger on a flight to see the sights.
The Visitor Aloha Society of Hawaii said it’s helping Lazear’s family while the investigation continues.
The company offering the lessons is called “Paradise Air Hang Gliding.” They said they had a perfect safety record, dating back to their opening in 2002.
On the day of the crash, beachgoers were turned away at the Mokuleia entrance of Kaena Point State Park as authorities investigated the scene. DLNR has closed the area until further notice.
“That’s devastating,” said Alexandra Horne who was visiting from Florida. “We were just seeing some people flyover.”
The FAA identified the craft as a single-engine EDGE XT-912-L.
Aviation experts said it’s a motorized version of a hang glider.
It’s lightweight and controlled by weight shift rather than regular controls.
“It kind of shook me up because I flew here a long time ago,” said William Herron Sr., of Haleiwa.
Herron is a former hang glider.
He never used a motorized one but feels for the rest of the gliding community.
“It kind of bothers me how these guys are so good that something like this could happen to them,” said Herron. “I just feel so sorry for them because, like I’m a pilot myself.”
The FAA and NTSB are investigating the crash.
This story will be updated.
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