Pilot, passenger statements describe Hawaii helicopter crash….sunset tour around the Big Island
The pilot of a helicopter that crashed on a remote Hawaii lava field during a sunset tour in June told investigators that the engine had been swapped out but three earlier flights that day were normal.
The National Transportation Safety Board on Monday released various documents related to the crash that injured all six people on board, but the agency has yet to release a probable cause for why the helicopter suddenly made “violent and uncommanded yaw and pitch changes.”
The morning of the crash, the pilot and a mechanic took the helicopter on a operation control flight after its engine had been changed and there were no issues with the flight, according to the pilot’s accident report. The documents did not specify exactly when the engine was changed.
