...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM HST FRIDAY...
* WHAT...East winds 15 to 25 kt.
* WHERE...Kauai Northwest Waters, Kauai Windward Waters, Kauai
Leeward Waters, Kauai Channel and Oahu Leeward Waters.
* WHEN...Until 6 AM HST Friday.
* IMPACTS...Conditions will be hazardous to small craft.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Inexperienced mariners, especially those operating smaller
vessels, should avoid navigating in these conditions.
&&
The National Transportation Safety Board recently released its preliminary report on the crash.
UPDATED June 23, 3:30pm: Aviation expert Peter Forman, who reviewed the report, shared the following with KITV4:
The accident has a clear cause, which was identified in the preliminary report. The structure that extends from the back end of the helicopter is called the tail boom, and it includes the tail rotor which is essential to keeping the helicopter under control by counteracting the torque created when the helicopter's engine rotates the main rotor blades.
Without the tail boom, the helicopter would rotate quickly with no chance of controlling the rotation. The pilot must have done a good job of using his remaining controls to bring about a survivable touchdown even while the helicopter was spinning downward.
The helicopter had lots of flight hours which could have led to some metal fatigue, the helicopter could have flown through some really bad turbulence, or a combination of such factors could have led to the loss of the tail boom.
ORIGINAL STORY
KALEA, Hawaii (KITV4) -- Investigators have released their preliminary report on the tour helicopter crash on the Big Island that injured six people in early June.
The Bell 407 helicopter operated by Paradise Helicopters departed from Kona International Airport about 5 p.m. on June 8 for a sightseeing tour. It crashed about 30 minutes after takeoff near the southernmost tip of the island.
In the preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), after about 30 minutes into the flight, the helicopter suddenly shook violently and then went into an uncontrolled spin. A passenger confirmed the spin and also told investigators she saw something fall off the helicopter but could not tell what it was.
The chopper continued a rapid, spinning decent until it impacted the lava field and ended up on its left side.
NTSB investigators examining the crash site noted that the helicopter’s tail boom had detached and come to rest about 762 feet northeast of the main wreckage. Investigators say the “upper left attachment fitting fastener” did not appear to be there and that the lower left attachment fitting was “fractured and showed displayed fatigue signatures.”
Portions of the tail boom were taken for further examination by the NTSB Materials Lab.
A copy of the NTSB report is included at the bottom of this article.
The rough lava field where the helicopter crashed is more than a mile from the nearest road, so rescuers had to be taken there by two helicopters, Hawaii County Assistant Fire Chief Darwin Okinaka said.
Six people were onboard when the chopper went down in the lava field. Four of the six miraculously only sustained minor injuries in the crash. Two others suffered serious injuries.
