Fri, May 13, 2022
	
	
		 NTSB Alleges FAA Could Have Prevented Tour Helicopter Crash
    Earlier this week, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) alleged that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was negligent in preventing the fatal crash of an Air Tour Helicopter in 2019.
    
    On 26 December 2019, an Airbus AS350 B2 helicopter that was being used for Air Tours by Safari Aviation crashed in Kekaha, Hawaii, killing the pilot and all six passengers after possibly entering instrument meteorological conditions (IMC).
    The NTSB stated that as early as 2013, they emphasized [to the FAA] the need for more ‘flight information’ that they [NTSB] could use in possibly reconstructing the factors involved in accidents, and in drafting operating recommendations to avoid future recurrences. The NTSB also cited a general lack of up-to-date weather conditions, information about unusual/atypical weather, and lack of specialized in-flight weather training for air tour operators as factors that could have avoided the fatal crash of 2019.
    Investigators stated that the air tour pilot was highly experienced who also served as the air tour company’s Chief Pilot and Check Airman, and still managed to get himself into a situation from which he could not recover. The terrain interference coupled with sparseness of weather observation systems, subsequently spotty radio communications and flight-tracking leaves a lot up to the pilot to evaluate as they go. You may recall the Civil Air Patrol crash on 29 March 2022 which had departed Lihue Airport and met its fatal end with two pilots aboard some 13 miles north in Kekhana. According to eyewitnesses, deteriorating weather was a contributing factor.
    In the authors opinion, the NTSB appears to be using this incident to again push for the installation of flight data recorders. While the data recorders are good for evaluating after the crash, a more pressing need, it seems is the availability of real-time weather, information sharing, and training/awareness for the atypical/unusual weather common to the area. 
    
		
		
	 
	
	
 
	
		More News
	
	
	        
		
	         
			We're Everywhere... Thanks To You! Even with the vast resources and incredibly far-reaching scope of the Aero-News Network, every now and then a story that should be reported on sl>[...]
			
	        
			
		
	        
 
			“The Coast Guard anticipates new aircraft procurements may be based off Sikorsky’s MH-60R aircraft, which is the maritime variant of the H-60 in active production. Diff>[...]
			
	        
			
		
	        
 
			Aero Linx: Classic Jet Aircraft Association (CJAA) The CJAA Formation and Safety Team (FAST) Mission is to be the sole authorized provider of formation training and certification f>[...]
			
	        
			
		
	        
 
			During A Low Pass Over A Gravel Bar, The Airplane’S Tailwheel Impacted An Area Of Rough, Uneven Terrain Analysis: The pilot reported that he was flying low-level over various>[...]
			
	        
			
		
	        
 
			Hold For Release Used by ATC to delay an aircraft for traffic management reasons; i.e., weather, traffic volume, etc. Hold for release instructions (including departure delay infor>[...]