Honolulu Honolulu Councilwoman Takes Up The Fight Against Tour Helicopters 5 Tired of the long wait for action, City Council member Esther Kiaaina takes residents’ pleas for peace and quiet direct to helicopter companies.
As tourism rebounds, island residents are demanding relief from noisy sightseeing helicopters buzzing their homes up to 40 times a day.
Fed up with inaction by the Federal Aviation Administration, the government agency that regulates the helicopter industry, Honolulu City Council member Esther Kiaaina is pleading directly for relief from the helicopter companies themselves.
Last month she wrote to the owners of five helicopter companies that operate on Oahu — Mauna Loa, Blue Hawaiian, Rainbow, Magnum and Paradise — asking them to voluntarily change the flight paths and schedules of their tours over the Windward side of the island to avoid residential areas.
