NTSB · Safety Recommendation
Safety Recommendation A-22-013
Recommendation
TO THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION: As an interim measure until completion of the action to satisfy Safety Recommendation A-21-15, require Hawaii air tour operators to install Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast Out (ADS-B) equipment in their aircraft to enable real-time flight position tracking.
Safety Issue and Context
This report discusses the December 26, 2019, accident involving a seven-seat helicopter operated by Safari Aviation Inc. as a commercial air tour flight that encountered instrument meteorological conditions and collided into terrain in a remote, wooded area near Kekaha, Hawaii, on the island of Kauai. The pilot and the six passengers were fatally injured, and the helicopter was destroyed.
Safety issues identified in this report include limited ability of existing infrastructure to fully support some aviation safety-related functions needed for the safe operation of low-flying air tour flights, resulting in air tour pilots having to rely on their own in-flight visual weather assessments; absence of safety assurance processes to guide pilot decision-making; and ineffective monitoring and oversight of Hawaii air tour operators by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
As a result of this investigation, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) makes eight new safety recommendations to the FAA, one new safety recommendation to the Vertical Aviation Safety Team, and one new safety recommendation to tour flight operators. NTSB also reiterates nine previously issued recommendations and two previously issued classified recommendations to the FAA.
Response History
June 24, 2025 · Recipient Response · FAA
-From Christopher J. Rocheleau, Acting Administrator: The FAA plans to publish an advisory circular (AC) for Enhanced Flight Following Center (EFFC) for Commercial Air Tour Operators. This AC will provide information and recommendations that may assist commercial air tour operators of all sizes and scope to develop, implement, and integrate enhanced flight-following procedures for improved operational control and create an EFFC. The publication will include processes to train personnel in preflight risk analysis, providing pilots with weather briefings, monitoring the progress of the flights, and participating in two-way communications with pilots to alert them of any weather hazards.
The anticipated publication date of this AC is September 30, 2026.
The FAA continues to review Hawaii air tour operators’ proprietary training materials to ensure they include cue-based, island-specific weather training. The improved quality of available training materials reviewed so far has satisfied the need for training examples, which the FAA would have provided otherwise.
Advisory Circular 136-B048 (now AC 136-4), Supplemental Information for the Creation of Operating Procedures and Pilot Training Subjects Related to Operations Specifications (OpSpec)/Letter of Authorization (LOA) B048, was published on 11/12/2024. The AC will provide guidance to air tour operators on training flight support personnel in the process of preflight risk analysis, providing pilots with weather briefings, monitoring the progress of active tour flights, and participating in two-way communications with pilots to alert them of any unanticipated weather hazards.
Additionally, the AC also has a specific inclusion for cue-based, island-specific weather training to enable pilots to evaluate weather patterns based on visual cues, and to determine from those cues if it is appropriate to continue the flight as planned or if an alternate route of flight is necessary. The AC is available at the following website: https://drs.faa.gov/browse/excelExternalWindow/DRSDOCID18726233262024111420241.0001
FAA Notice 8900.718, Revised and Reinstated OpSpec/LOA B048, Commercial Air Tour Operations Below 1,500 Feet Above the Surface in the State of Hawaii: Decommissioning of LOA B548 (HQ Revision: 000); and the Cancellation of the Hawaii Air Tour Common Procedures Manual (HATCPM), was published on 11/12/2024. This notice announces the change to B048 and includes draft copies of the Opspec/LOAs. B548 is rescinded, and only B048 will be issued for all applicable FAR parts. Operators will be required to archive previous versions of OpSpec B048 and LOA B548, and request approval of the new versions. The notice is found at the following website: