Cessna 188 Pacific rescue
| Incident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 22 December 1978 |
| Summary | Navigational disorientation |
| Site | Over the Pacific Ocean |
| First aircraft | |
| A Cessna 188 similar to the rescued aircraft | |
| Type | Cessna 188 |
| Operator | Jay Prochnow |
| Registration | Unknown |
| Flight origin | San Francisco International Airport, San Francisco, California, United States |
| 1st stopover | Honolulu International Airport, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States |
| 2nd stopover | Pago Pago International Airport, Pago Pago, American Samoa |
| Last stopover | Norfolk Island Airport, Norfolk Island, Australia |
| Destination | Sydney Airport, Sydney, Australia |
| Occupants | 1 |
| Crew | 1 |
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Survivors | 1 |
| Second aircraft | |
| An Air New Zealand McDonnell Douglas DC-10 in 1978 | |
| Type | McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 |
| Operator | Air New Zealand |
| Registration | ZK-NZS |
| Flight origin | Nadi International Airport, Nadi, Fiji |
| Destination | Auckland Airport, Auckland, New Zealand |
| Passengers | 88 |
On 22 December 1978, a Cessna 188 aircraft, flown by an American private pilot, became lost over the Pacific Ocean. The only other aircraft in the area that was able to assist was a commercial Air New Zealand flight. After several hours of searching, the crew of the commercial flight located the lost Cessna and helped it reach Norfolk Island, where the plane landed safely.