HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Kamaka Air Inc. was founded in 1993 as a local airline.

It is certified by the Federal Aviation Administration as an inter-island airline and logistics company for per-pound air cargo services and non-scheduled charters.

Its recent history is an example of consolidation happening in the general aviation industry across the country.

In February 2022, RLG Capital and Trinity Private Equity Group acquired an 80-percent majority stake in the airline.

Most of its aircraft are single-engine Cessna Caravan’s like the one that crashed on Tuesday. These are extremely reliable aircraft with the capability of short landings and takeoffs needed to serve airports especially on Molokai and Lanai, so they are essential in serving those small communities.

The one that crashed on Tuesday was not particularly old. It was built in 2011.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE:

When Mokulele airlines — which provides essential air service to Molokai and Lanai — had trouble meeting its schedules last year, Kamaka Air began offering charter flights for passengers as well.

In January 2023, a Kamaka Air flight crashed near the Molokai airport. The plane was totaled but the pilot and copilot walked away with minor injuries.

In May 2024, Kamaka Air put out a press release saying it was under new ownership and new leadership with complete support of the existing leadership of Kamaka.

It promised a smooth transition but ran into trouble filling key jobs, including a chief pilot and director of flight operations.

That made the FAA uncomfortable, so the company shut down temporarily and returned to service within a couple of weeks.

Kamaka Air is proud of its history in serving during hard times. Their planes were used to deliver emergency supplies of COVID tests to Lanai and food to Kauai during the pandemic, and food and other emergency supplies to Maui after the wildfires.

As federal aviation authorities investigate, the airline will be scrutinized for its operations and safety protocols, and whether it was fully in compliance with FAA certification requirements.

David Hinderland, Kamaka Air CEO, issued the following statement:

“It is with heavy hearts that Kamaka Air confirms the loss of two members of the Kamaka Air family in an accident at 3:13 this afternoon near the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport. We are not releasing the names of the pilots until family members have had a chance to process this tragedy, and we hope the media will give them the same consideration.

In the meantime, we are making ourselves available to the Hawaiian Department of Transportation, the National Transportation Safety Board, and the Federal Aviation Administration for investigation into this accident, and we will also share appropriate information with the media as it is confirmed over the coming hours and days.

At this time, we ask for your patience, as you know the urgency of getting correct information that not only offers a clear understanding of what happened, but to assure that the information is handled appropriately.”

Copyright 2024 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.

Associated Press

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (8-1) vs. Oregon State Beavers (3-7, 0-1 WCC)

Makawao, Hawaii; Thursday, 10 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Oregon State faces Western Kentucky in Makawao, Hawaii.

The Beavers have a 3-6 record in non-conference games. Oregon State is 1-5 in games decided by 10 points or more.

The Hilltoppers have an 8-1 record against non-conference oppponents. Western Kentucky has a 6-0 record against teams above .500.

Oregon State is shooting 39.5% from the field this season, 1.5 percentage points lower than the 41.0% Western Kentucky allows to opponents. Western Kentucky has shot at a 45.5% clip from the field this season, 5.2 percentage points above the 40.3% shooting opponents of Oregon State have averaged.

TOP PERFORMERS: AJ Marotte is shooting 34.8% and averaging 11.8 points for the Beavers.

Alexis Mead is averaging 15.4 points, 3.8 assists and 2.8 steals for the Hilltoppers.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

One of Hawaii’s luxury hotels may soon have a new owner.

Blackstone is looking to potentially offload the five-star Grand Wailea resort in Maui, Bloomberg reported on Monday. The alternative asset manager is working with a broker to reach out to prospective buyers, people with knowledge of the proceedings told the outlet. However, only preliminary talks are taking place, and Blackstone could decide to retain the property. (A spokesperson for the investment company declined to comment to Bloomberg.)

The Grand Wailea is an 845-key, 40-acre hotel branded as a Waldorf Astoria property. It can host events for up to 3,200 guests, and it served as the filming location for scenes in the 2011 movie Just Go With It, starring Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler. Blackstone wasn’t the owner then, though: The company acquired the Grand Wailea for some $1.1 billion in 2018, Bloomberg reported at the time.

While the sale is still up in the air at the moment, it has been a rather bountiful time for the buying and selling of luxury hotels. Earlier this year, for example, billionaire Larry Ellison bought the Eau Palm Beach Resort in Florida for an unspecified amount. Just a few months later, the owner of the Ben hotel in West Palm Beach sought to sell that property for a whopping $1 million per room. Proving that Florida is a hot commodity, the Reuben Brothers also bought the W South Beach for more than $400 million, Bloomberg noted.

Blackstone hasn’t been immune to the trend either: Earlier this year, the company decided to sell the Turtle Bay resort in Hawaii for some $680 million, the outlet wrote. Nadeem Meghji, the global co-head of Blackstone Real Estate, addressed that sale on Tuesday, saying that the market has been trending upward.

“The environment is improving,” Meghji told Bloomberg Television. “When you think about sale activity and you think about values, when there are more folks who want to buy real estate, that’s usually a better time to start selling, and so we expect to see even more of that next year.”

Looks like we could see Grand Wailea changing hands in 2025.