Hawaiian Airline’s flight from Honolulu last night was unable to make a landing at Pago Pago International Airport because of strong winds. The aircraft made two unsuccessful attempts to land before it returned to Honolulu.
Travelers who were booked to fly out had already checked in and were waiting in the departure area.
Flight 465 arrived back safely in Honolulu just after 3am.
A passenger on board the flight, Mrs. Tasileta Ioane Te’o said from Honolulu this morning, “I’m thankful the two pilots thought of safety, and not pushing to land.”
She said children were crying and passengers were “silently stressed” and “definitely all praying” as the aircraft was circling in the air.
She said they experienced strong wind turbulence, as the aircraft was approaching to land. She gives credit to the pilots, Captain Lincoln Moliga and a Caucasian pilot for their quick response in taking the aircraft back up.
Mrs. Ioane Teo said it was fortunate no one had a heart attack, especially since there were several elderly travelers on board.
“With the many recent aircraft accidents the pilots made a wise safety call last night. Praise God,” she commented.
Hawaiian Airlines had announced last night that the flight would be rescheduled to today, however, this morning, it said that the flight has been canceled and passengers can rebook on the Monday and Tuesday flights next week.
A media spokesperson for Hawaiian Airlines Marissa Villegas said, as of this morning, weather forecasts have not improved and “out of an abundance of caution,” they have cancelled Flights 465 and 466.
She said Flight 465 returned to Honolulu due to strong and unstable crosswinds that prevented the airbus A330 from landing at Pago Pago International Airport. There were 160 passengers and 11 crew on board. The aircraft returned to Honolulu and arrived after 3am without incident.
She added that all passengers will be accommodated on next available flights. “We are wholly committed to the safety of our passengers and crew and apologize for the inconvenience.”
