NTSB Prepares to Recover Cargo Jet From Ocean Floor in Hawaii

National Transportation Safety Board investigators are scheduled to begin recovery operations this weekend for the wreckage of a Boeing 737 cargo jet that ditched off the Hawaiian island of Oahu on July 2.

The TransAir 737-200 was bound for Kahului. Shortly after takeoff from Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu, the pilots reported anomalies in both engines and put the plane into Mamala Bay. The pilots escaped and were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard and the Honolulu Airport Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting Unit.

Investigators want to get the flight data recorder, cockpit voice recorder, engines, and other components to help piece together what went wrong during Transair flight 810. The recorders are important because they can provide information about the performance and operation of the plane.

The fuselage broke into two pieces, with the wings and tail attached to the aft section. Both engines separated from the wings at impact. All the wreckage is on an ocean shelf at a depth ranging from 350 to 450 feet, the NTSB said last week.

Transair's insurance provider has hired several companies to bring the wreckage and cargo to the surface. The recovery operation will involve a research vessel with remotely operated vehicles and a barge equipped with a crane. Several NTSB investigators will be aboard the research vessel to coordinate the recovery effort.

The automated submersibles will be used to rig each of the engines and fuselage sections so they can be brought to the surface.

The recorders will be transported to the NTSB Recorder Laboratory in Washington, where they will be downloaded for analysis. The components will be put in crates and shipped to mainland facilities for further examination and testing. 

The NTSB said the entire recovery operation is expected to last 10 to 14 days, depending on weather and other factors.

The Federal Aviation Administration suspended the operating authority of Rhoades Aviation, the official corporate entity operating as Transair, following the crash. 

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