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Pilot Survives After Small Plane Crash Off Coast of Hawaii

by Associated Press

   HONOLULU --

   A civilian contractor for the Hawaii Air National Guard who was
   participating in a military exercise survived after his plane crashed
   off the coast of Honolulu, authorities said Wednesday.

   U.S. Coast Guard spokeswoman Petty Officer Sara Muir says the pilot is
   in stable condition after being rescued about 3 miles (4.8 kilometers)
   south of Oahu near Honolulu's Sand Island.

   Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said a Hawker
   Hunter jet went down in the ocean around 2:25 p.m. after taking off
   from Honolulu's airport.

   The pilot had been participating in a military exercise called Sentry
   Aloha exercise, said U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Matthew West. The
   Hawaii Air National Guard was hosting the exercise, which involved
   about 800 personnel and 30 aircraft from nine states.

   Departing flights from the Honolulu airport were held as a precaution
   for about 20 minutes, said Tim Sakahara, spokesman for the state
   Department of Transportation.

   The Hawker Hunter is a British jet developed in the late 1940s and
   early 1950s, said the website of defense contractor BAE Systems.

   Initially, a single-seat version was used as a maneuverable fighter
   aircraft. It was later used as both a fighter and bomber and for
   reconnaissance missions.

   The British navy and air force continued to use a two-seat version into
   the early 1990s.

   Britain exported the plane, and it was also used by the air forces of
   21 other nations.