# Ultralight Crash at Polihale



## slip (Mar 11, 2014)

There was a crash today at Polihale with two fatalities. The ultralight was
Operated by Birds in Paridaise out of Hanapepe. I know my DW thought about
This type of flight before. The winds make it hard for helicopters let alone
These types of small aircraft.

http://thegardenisland.com/news/local/update-rescuers-confirm-two-fatalities-in-crash/article_bb4f9e54-a95f-11e3-96d6-0019bb2963f4.html?mode=jqm


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## daventrina (Mar 12, 2014)

http://www.staradvertiser.com/news/breaking/2_killed_in_crash_of_light_sport_aircraft_off_Kauai.html

"A pilot of Kauai Aerosports and a student were aboard the aircraft when it crashed"


http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Ultralight-aircraft-crash-kills-2-people-on-Kauai-5307730.php

"Birds in Paradise LLC, a company that advertises scenic flights for tourists billed as introductory flight lessons rather than aerial tours."

"FAA regulations prohibit the type of aircraft that crashed from being rented out for tours or thrill rides. The regulations allow commercial use of light sport aircraft only for flight training or to tow a glider or an unpowered ultralight aircraft."

Ultralights fly through loophole
http://www.staradvertiser.com/news/20110521_Ultralights_fly_through_loophole.html



IF one IS NOT actually taking instruction in one of these aircraft .. the flight is NOT legal. 

For what they cost... there are better safer options. :ignore:


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## thheath (Mar 12, 2014)

They fly over my house everyday.

This is the forth accident on Kauai, since I've been here, also a couple on the Big Island.

Other then my ex wife, I wouldn't recommend it too anyone.


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## ccurey (Mar 12, 2014)

thheath said:


> They fly over my house everyday.
> 
> This is the forth accident on Kauai, since I've been here, also a couple on the Big Island.
> 
> ...


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## Ricci (Mar 13, 2014)

*from a different perspective*

My husband and I flew with Gerry (the pilot who was killed) in 2004.  He was considered the best of the best.  It was very windy when we went up and the ultralight was hard to control.  After our flights, he canceled the flights for the rest of the day.  We signed waivers and we were certainly told it was an introductory instruction flight.  We were instructed about how the ultralight works the entire time.  Is it a loophole.....probably....but it is legal.

My entire family...2 adult children, husband and myself have since flown twice with another pilot over the Hana coast on Maui.
Again, we were instructed about the mechanisms and how to fly it the entire time.  As a matter of fact, the second time we flew, we sat in the pilot's seat and other than take off and landing, we actually flew the ultralight ourselves for a few minutes.

We felt very safe and everything was handled very professionably.

I do have to say that my husband and I both agreed not to do it again on Kauai because of the winds that always seem be present at Port Allen.


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## thheath (Mar 13, 2014)

Living on Kauai I did some research and in the past 5 years there has been 6 deaths and 2 serious injuries due to these ultralight operations.

Also I can't imagine they have any liability insurance, considering the costs would be astronomical.

Additionally I wouldn't think the waivers people sign wouldn't protect the operators against suits claiming negligence.

These operations on Kauai are few, small and endanger trusting visitors.

Sad


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## Ricci (Mar 13, 2014)

I can't imagine they would be allowed to operate at all without liability insurance.
Everyone is allowed to take different risks.  Going in the ocean on Kauai is a risk..I believe 17 people drowned on Kauai last year alone.  There were also three fatal automobile crashes in three weeks in Nov/Dec last year.

Gerry was a pilot for 23 years without incident.  Accidents happen.


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## thheath (Mar 13, 2014)

Ricci said:


> I can't imagine they would be allowed to operate at all without liability insurance.
> Everyone is allowed to take different risks.  Going in the ocean on Kauai is a risk..I believe 17 people drowned on Kauai last year alone.  There were also three fatal automobile crashes in three weeks in Nov/Dec last year.
> 
> Gerry was a pilot for 23 years without incident.  Accidents happen.



You're 100% correct, a few years back we had 6 visitors drown in a week.

It just makes me sad to turn on the TV or read the newspaper about another visitor dying.  People visit Paradise to vacation not die or lose a love one and it's just sad.

PS: There's a reason why the FAA won't allow ultralights to be used for sightseeing like helicopters...


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## tompalm (Mar 14, 2014)

Ricci said:


> Again, we were instructed about the mechanisms and how to fly it the entire time.
> 
> We felt very safe and everything was handled very professionally.



Good pilots can talk with a lot of confidence and they may be very good pilots.  However, ultra lights are not as strong as a pilot might advertise.  Also, someone that has a lot of hours in these and flies them all the time might become complacent and think that the air-frame is safe for conditions that it is not designed for.  They are not safe on any island.

Also in the news is an accident a couple weeks ago on Lanai.  It was a charter for nine people that live on Maui.  A small twin engine (Piper Chieftain, I think) aircraft took off about an hour after dark and impacted land shortly after takeoff.  It was a small company with one owner and one plane, or similar to the ultralight operations.  Accident investigators reported yesterday that the damage impact zone was spread 640 feet, or parts of the airplane were found about 300 feet before the main body hit the ground.  A few people did survive the accident.  It appears the aircraft had a major malfunction that caused the crash.  Maybe it was just an engine failure and with the aircraft fully loaded, the pilot had a difficult time maintaining control.  

The point is, if paying to fly, stick with larger companies that have regular maintenance inspections from the FAA.


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## thheath (Mar 14, 2014)

What he said ^^^


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## daventrina (Mar 14, 2014)

Ricci said:


> My husband and I flew with Gerry (the pilot who was killed) in 2004.  He was considered the best of the best.  It was very windy when we went up and the ultralight was hard to control.  ....but it is legal.


A) A first ultralight training flight in such conditions is insane. :ignore:
B) It is not legal. There is no way one could reasonably justify a first ultralight flight like that in conditions like that as a legitimate training flight. 

If folks want to go flight seeing, there are legitimate options for those flights!



thheath said:


> PS: There's a reason why the FAA won't allow ultralights to be used for sightseeing like helicopters...


Those restriction not only apply to ultralights , they apply to all S-LSA and experimental aircraft. Additionally, experimantals are restricted to training only for the owners of the aircraft. If folks keep conducting sightseeing flights under the guise of flight training, the FAA will change the rules for S-LSA so that they will be treated as experimantals. These flights are already under close scrutiny by the FAA. 



Ricci said:


> Gerry was a pilot for 23 years without incident.  Accidents happen.


I would guess if it was your husband that was killed in that accident, you would have a different opinion?
That is not a phrase you will hear often in our aviation community.
We spend a huge amount of effort training, practicing, reviewing, discussing, and planning so we don't have accidents. 

This is not the first accident for this aircraft:
_NTSB Identification: WPR10CA224
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Monday, April 19, 2010 in Eleele, HI
Probable Cause Approval Date: 07/22/2010
Aircraft: Evolution Trikes REVO, registration: N98EV
Injuries: 2 Uninjured.
NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.
The sport instructor pilot reported that during a student pilot’s first dual instructional flight, the engine lost power while on a 1.5 mile final to land. The instructor made a forced landing on a dirt road during which the trike nosed over. Post accident examination of the trike revealed 1.2 gallons of fuel remained in the tank, which is at or below the empty markings of the fuel tank. The manufacturer reported that the unusable fuel level is 1.4 gallons. The aircraft was equipped with a fuel monitoring system that activates once the fuel level drops below 2.7 gallons. The pilot told witnesses that he had observed the low fuel warning on the instrument panel. The aircraft flight manual had a typographical error, which stated the unusable fuel was 0.4 gallons. As a result of this accident investigation the manufacturer corrected the error and reissued the corrected page to the aircraft flight manual.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:

A loss of engine power as a result of fuel exhaustion due to the pilot's improper decision to continue the flight after the low fuel warning. Contributing to the accident was the typographical error in the flight manual concerning the unusable fuel quantity._​


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## Ricci (Mar 18, 2014)

" I would guess if it was your husband that was killed in that accident, you would have a different opinion?
That is not a phrase you will hear often in our aviation community.
We spend a huge amount of effort training, practicing, reviewing, discussing, and planning so we don't have accidents. "




I was not trying to be cavalier in saying that accidents happen.  I was merely saying that after 23 years, an accident finally did happen.

And, regardless of the "huge amount of effort training, practicing, reviewing, discussing and planning so we don't have accidents".......... they still happen, don't they?

Gerry was a good man who was tragically killed doing something he loved to do.  He was not careless nor insane.  Let's wait for the investigation to be completed before passing judgement.


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## daventrina (Mar 29, 2014)

*NTSB Identification: WPR14FA135*

NTSB Identification: WPR14FA135
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Tuesday, March 11, 2014 in Kekaha, HI
Aircraft: EVOLUTION TRIKES REVO, registration: N98EV
Injuries: 2 Fatal.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.

On March 11, 2014, about 0910 Hawaiian standard time, a special light sport Revo Evolution Trikes weight-shift control aircraft, N98EV, impacted terrain and was consumed by fire in Kekaha, Hawaii. Birds in Paradise, LLC., owned by the accident pilot, was operating the trike under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The certified* light sport instructor and student pilot *sustained fatal injuries; the trike was destroyed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the instructional flight. The trike departed Port Allen Airport, Hanapepe, Hawaii about 0850 and the introductory flight was intended to take 60 minutes before returning to the airport.

*A second Birds in Paradise certificated flight instructor (CFI) was giving instruction in another trike while flying in close proximity with the accident trike. *He stated that about 0615 that morning he met up with the accident pilot at the company's facilities. They began to take their respective trikes out of the hangar and he noticed the accident pilot was on a ladder routing compressed air into the accident trike's fuel vent. The second pilot commented to the accident pilot that the fuel cap was still affixed on the tank and removed it for him, which produced a "pop" sound from the compressed air escaping the system. They wheeled the trikes over to the staging area and greeted their *student *pilots shortly thereafter. After fitting the* students *with flight suits and helmets, the pilots gave them a briefing and departed around 0850. 

After departure, the accident pilot told the second pilot that he was going "on company," meaning that they would communicate to one another on the company frequency 123.450; this was the last transmission the CFI heard from the accident pilot. 

Approaching the Barking Sands class D airspace, the second pilot transmitted over the company frequency that he was switching to the Barking Sands frequency to receive a clearance from the control tower, to* transition through their airspace as a flight of two*. 

As the CFI's trike was approaching the northwest side of Polihale Beach , he descended to about* 600 feet above ground level *(agl) and observed the accident trike about *1,000 feet agl* and* 75 feet away horizontally at his 1-o'clock position*; that was the last time he saw the accident trike flying. The CFI and his student performed two near-360 degree turns over the ocean and attempted to contact the accident pilot over the radio. They noticed smoke on the base of the ridgeline and maneuvered over to the area. 

The trike came to rest at the base of a ridgeline about one nautical mile east of Polihale State Park. The main wreckage was consumed by fire but all major structural components were located within the wreckage debris area. The accident pilot had recently had problems with the fuel system suctioning the fuel supply out of the main vent line (located in the belly of the aircraft). In an effort to rectify the problem, he routed the vent line up the mast and through the keel pocket toward the trailing edge. 

The wreckage and a camera were recovered for further examination.​
http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=20140312X35434&key=1

A first training flight ... in formation and/or close proximity to another aircraft.
Really? I don't think that there is any sane CRI or jury that would consider this a real training flight. :ignore:

We pilots hope the FAA fixes this by enforcing the current regulations instead of prohibiting flight training in S-LSA aircraft!

Kauai glider company has crashed before
By Kristine Uyeno
http://khon2.com/2014/03/11/kauai-glider-company-has-crashed-before/

Pickering man dies in Hawaii glider crash 5
BY TERRY DAVIDSON	 ,TORONTO SUN
http://www.torontosun.com/2014/03/14/pickering-man-dies-in-hawaii-glider-crash

According to information from the FAA, commercial operators of these aircraft may use them for flight instruction but not for sightseeing purposes, and in 2011 operators on the island — including Charlebois — were given a warning after it was found some operators were “trying to get around the air tour prohibition by offering scenic flights under the guise of ‘introductory flight instruction’.”​
The FAA warning came in the wake of several fatalities during the previous few years.​Another FAA safety meeting was held with Charlebois and the other operators in 2013.​
It would be a HUGE stretch to call this a  training flight :ignore:
Trike flying over Kauai, Hawaii - Birds in Paradise
http://youtu.be/MODLmp4G8O8


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