# Accident 20030723027819A: Bell 206B, Lihue, HI, July 23, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 23, 2003, 08:53 local time
- Place: Lihue, HI
- Airport: Lihue Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Maneuver
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: DCGA
- Location: 22.0703° N, 159.4950° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=22.0703&lon=-159.4950&mi=10
- Aircraft: N37741, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N37741-2003-12-11) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Bell 206B (registry code 1181511, https://openairdocs.org/model/bell-206b) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Allison 250 SER 400HP (registry code 03013, https://openairdocs.org/engine/allison-250-ser-400hp) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BELL 206B
- Reported engine: ALLSN 250C20B
- People aboard: 5
- Fatal injuries: 5
- Pilot flight hours: 13,684 total, 8,674 in this make and model, 292 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX03FA241](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX03FA241) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030723027819A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) ON JULY 23, 2003, ABOUT 0853 HAWAIIAN STANDARD TIME, A BELL 206B HELICOPTER, N37741, COLLIDED WITH TERRAIN WHILE MANEUVERING IN THE WAI'ALE'ALE CRATER, KAUAI, HAWAII. THE HELICOPTER IMPACTED STEEP UP SLOPING TERRAIN ON THE NORTHWESTERN INSIDE CRATER WALL AND WAS DESTROYED. THE PRELIMINARY WRECKAGE EXAM REVEALED SIGNATURES CONSISTENT WITH THE HELICOPTER HAVING EXPERIENCED A LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. THE COMMERCIAL CERTIFICATED PILOT AND 4 PASSENGERS WERE FATALLY INJURED DURING THE ON DEMAND AIR TOUR FLIGHT. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (VMC) EXISTED IN THE VICINITY OF THE CRATER AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. THE HELICOPTER WAS OWNED AND OPERATED BY JACK HARTER HELICOPTERS, INC., LIHUE, HAWAII. A COMPANY VISUAL FLIGHT RULES (VFR) FLIGHT PLAN WAS ACTIVATED WITH THE OPERATOR. THE FLIGHT WAS PERFORMED UNDER 14 CFR PART 135 AND ORIGINATED FROM THE HELIPAD SECTION OF THE LIHUE AIRPORT, LIHUE, HAWAII AT ABOUT 0803.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB LAX03FA241](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX03FA241), Jul 23, 2003: Bell 206B (N37741), Waialeale,Kauai, HI, destroyed, 5 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain adequate terrain clearance/altitude while descending over mountainous terrain, and his continued flight into adverse weather. Factors contributing to the accident were…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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