Witness saw missing Hawaii Life Flight plane hit the water

By JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER
Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) — A preliminary report on a Hawaii medical transport plane that went missing Dec. 15 says a witness saw it hit the ocean. The National Transportation Safety Board report says the witness — a small plane pilot — reported seeing the Hawaii Life Flight plane make a spiraling descent before hitting the water in the Maui Channel. The  occupants — a pilot, flight paramedic and flight nurse — are all presumed dead after the plane went off radar en route to pick up a patient. Many hospitals on Hawaii’s more rural islands offer limited medical services, often sending patients with more serious conditions to Oahu for care.