On Friday, July 2, a Boeing 737 cargo plane with two people onboard has ditched off the coast of Hawaii after experiencing engine trouble, BBC reports.

The aircraft was en route from Honolulu to the island of Maui but went down in the water soon after taking off from Daniel K Inouye International Airport.

The Coast Guard rescued both pilots from the sea early on Friday morning. One was found clinging to the plane's tail and airlifted to safety, Reuters news agency reports. According to the local news agency “Hawaii NewsNow”, the pilot was airlifted to Queen's Medical Center and taken to intensive care in critical condition. Another pilot was brought by rescuers to shore by boat, HNN said. He is reportedly in a serious condition with a head injury.

The pilots knew they were in trouble.

"We've lost number one engine," a crew member tells air traffic control, according to a recording posted online.

"We're going to lose the other engine, too. It's running very hot."

Boeing made an official statement on Twitter saying they were in contact with authorities about the incident and are "closely monitoring the situation".

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the incident.

"The pilots had reported engine trouble and were attempting to return to Honolulu when they were forced to land the aircraft in the water," the FAA said in a statement.

The plane was a 737-200 cargo airplane operated for the carrier Transair since 2014. According to the website of the airline, it was in business since 1982 and is one of Hawaii's biggest air cargo operators. It has a fleet of five Boeing 737s, it said.

This aircraft is not the same as a Boeing 737 Max, the aircraft temporarily grounded by authorities after two fatal passenger airline crashes in 2018 and 2019 respectively.