Mariners Rescue Downed Aviator and His Plane

Mariners are used to coming to the rescue of other mariners, but coming to the rescue of pilots — and their airplanes — is certainly more rare. But it happened recently.

"Puerto Escondido cruisers and local residents responded quickly on April 19 when there was a report over the VHF radio that a small plane had crashed near Juancalito Beach in Bahia Chuenque," advises Bob Norquist, who had been staying aboard his boat The Dark Side at Singlar Marina in Puerto Escondido.

"The two-passenger Challenger float plane had crashed about one mile offshore. The Mexican pilot, who was uninjured except for his pride, said he’d been flying at a low altitude when a downdraft caused an unexpected loss in altitude. Then a wing tip hit the water, tore up the plane, and caused it to start sinking immediately.

"As soon as the rescuers arrived on Jet Skis, pangas and dinghies, lines were quickly attached to the plane — which by that time was already beneath the surface. The banged up plane was towed to shore by three pangas and a cruiser’s dinghy, then pulled up the beach by a four-wheel drive vehicle."

Norquist, a longtime cruiser, said it was just another example of why people should keep their VHF radios on all the time.