Posted on 12/27/2019 11:14:47 AM PST by BenLurkin
The owner of the helicopter company reached out to the Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Honolulu when the aircraft didn’t return from a tour of the Napali coast, the Coast Guard previously said. One pilot and six passengers were on the helicopter and two of those passengers are believed to be minors.
The last communication came around 4:40 p.m. local time, Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Sara Muir told CNN Friday, about 40 minutes before the helicopter was due to return. At that time it was leaving Waimeia Canyon, Muir said.
Muir identified the helicopter company as Safari Helicopters. When reached by CNN, Safari Helicopters confirmed its helicopter was missing but wouldn’t provide additional details.
The aircraft is equipped with an electronic locator, Muir said, but officials haven’t received any signal from it.
(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...
You only get one crack at it.
I’m visiting my friend on the big island next year again.
I’ll have to call my other buddy on Kauai and see if I can visit.
I know he’s got horses there...
“You can bet the maintenance of those helicopters are done on an infrequent basis. “
It can happen on an isolated basis, but not for very long, and if generally true the FAA would be all over it. Air tour operators operate under (I believe) the provisions of 14 CFR Part 135, which, in combination with other regulations, stipulate maintenance activities and logging to the nth degree.
From what I’ve read on the aviation forums, especially the ones dealing with accidents, there are a significant number of charter operators who skirt the rules. They are the ones that tend to crash the most, too.
The wreckage and six bodies have been recovered. It appears that weather was a factor in the crash:
The Coast Guard said it was notified of the missing helicopter just after 6 p.m. and launched a MH-65 Dolphin rescue helicopter crew, a cutter and other resources.
Petty Officer 1st Class Robert Cox, of Coast Guard Joint Rescue Command Center Honolulu, previously said weather conditions in the search area were “challenging,” with low visibility and blustery winds, according to CNN affiliate KHNL/KGMB.
“There was a cold front that came through the area around that time, bringing scattered showers and an increase of wind gusts,” CNN meteorologist Robert Shackelford said.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/27/us/hawaii-tour-helicopter-missing/index.html
“That’s just plain dumb, and I can say that as a chopper pilot.”
Actually, your status as a chopper pilot totally disqualifies you from making any such judgment.
Congratulations on your survival.
Was it supposed to be a three-hour tour?
“What scares me now is that she has the itch to go back.”
Jeez, talk her out of it.
“Actually, your status as a chopper pilot totally disqualifies you from making any such judgment.”
So knowledge is subordinate to superstition and emotion. Got it.
The dumbing down of America on display.
“So knowledge is subordinate to superstition and emotion. Got it.”
You got it? Not likely. Your assertion is actually that denial is superior to experience and observation.
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