# Accident 20040924027559A: Bell 206B, Kalaheo, HI, September 24, 2004

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 24, 2004, 16:40 local time
- Place: Kalaheo, HI
- Airport: Port Allen
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 21.9967° N, 159.4983° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=21.9967&lon=-159.4983&mi=10
- Aircraft: N16849, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N16849-2006-07-19) (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: 3,900 total, 120 in this make and model, 120 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX04FA329](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX04FA329) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040924027559A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON SEPTEMBER 24, 2004, APPROXIMATELY 1640 HAWAIIAN STANDARD TIME, A BELL 206B SINGLE-ENGINE HELICOPTER, N16849, WAS DESTROYED WHEN IT IMPACTED MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN NEAR KALAHEO, ON THE ISLAND OF KAUAI, HAWAII. THE AIRCRAFT WAS REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY BALI HAI HELICOPTER TOURS, INC., OF HANAPEPE, HAWAII, UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 91 AS A NONSTOP SIGHTSEEING FLIGHT. THE COMMERCIAL HELICOPTER PILOT AND FOUR PASSENGERS WERE FATALLY INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED. THE LOCAL FLIGHT DEPARTED THE PORT ALLEN AIRPORT NEAR HANAPEPE AT 1605, AND WAS DESTINED TO RETURN TO PORT ALLEN AT 1650. THE COORDINATES FOR THE ACCIDENT SITE WERE 21 DEGREES 59.8 MINUTES NORTH LATITUDE AND 159 DEGREES 29.9 WEST LONGITIUDE.  THE OPERATOR WAS CONDUCTING NONSTOP SIGHTSEEING TOURS OUT OF THE PORT ALLEN AIRPORT (PKA) UNDER A SPECIAL FEDERAL AVIATION REGULATION (SFAR) 71 LETTER OF AUTHORIZATION (LOA). THE TOUR ROUTE INITIATED FROM PKA AND CONSISTED OF A CLOCKWISE FLIGHT AROUND THE ISLAND OF KAUAI THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO ENCOMPASS THE WAIMEA CANYON, THE NAPALI COAST, THE MT. WAIALEALE CRATER, AND THE MANA WAIPUNA FALLS BEFORE TERMINATING BACK AT PKA.

## 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 LAX04FA329](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX04FA329), Sep 25, 2004: Bell 206B (N16849), Kalaheo, HI, destroyed, 5 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's decision to continue flight under visual flight rules into an area of turbulent, reduced visibility weather conditions, which resulted in the pilot's spatial disorientation and loss of…

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.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.
