Aeronet Charters Critical Generators to Hawaii for FEMA

In July 2020, Aeronet San Diego chartered a Boeing 747 for FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) to transport five generators needing to be staged at Hilo International Airport in preparation for the aftermath of Hurricane Douglas. These generators would be used for anticipated backup power due to destruction from the hurricane.

The five generators weighed a total of 77,585 lbs. — the largest being 227″ x 68″ x 112″ (24,550 lbs.), and the smallest being 159″ x 57″ x 88″ (12,505 lbs.). All five were picked up from Hickam Air Force Base on a Friday afternoon, then handed off to the ground crew to load onto a flight on Saturday morning. The flight was originally scheduled to depart at 10:00 AM, but an earlier departure was granted, due to the urgent nature of the freight.

The flight took about 50 minutes from airport-to-airport. In order to land an aircraft the size of this 747, the flight had to land at Kona International Airport, where there were three flatbed / lowboy trailers awaiting pickup. The generators were off-loaded onto these trailers, then transported to Hilo. Due to the high winds on the “Big Island,” that journey took two and a half hours to complete. The generators reached their final destination — the Hilo Airport FEMA staging point — at 3:00 PM on Saturday. FEMA was very appreciative of the level of urgent service, pictures of their freight in transit, and the prompt status updates every step of the way. And it’s especially fulfilling to know Aeronet was of aid to the people of Hawaii during a moment of crisis.