Pilot crashed on Kahului-Hana flight
An aviation school gives investigators route information
WAILUKU » The pilot whose rented airplane crashed into a mountain in East Maui was en route from Kahului Airport to Hana Airport, according to a National Transportation Safety Board official. *CORRECTION
Kristi Dunks, the board's investigator in charge, said information about the flight route was obtained from the Maui Aviators Flight School, which rented the airplane.
Alan Gerow, 58, a businessman from Salt Lake City, was on vacation on Maui when he decided to take a trip to Hana, authorities said.
The four-seat, single-engine Cessna 172SP was found after the crash caused a blaze in a forest, prompting a call to police and fire officials at 3:49 p.m. Dec. 15.
The crushed cockpit was lodged in the earth from the impact of the crash, and authorities were unable to see the pilot during an initial search.
Fire rescue workers used tools to dig out the cockpit and retrieve the body a day later.
Dunks said Gerow did not use his radio to call for help before his airplane went down.
"At the time of the accident, he wasn't in contact with the tower," Dunks said.
Dunks said she was still looking into Gerow's flight records and qualifications, but he was not a student pilot.
Dunks said a investigator had completed an examination of the wreckage Wednesday.
She said she still needed to talk with the investigator to determine if there were any mechanical or flight control malfunctions.
Dunks said due to the holidays, a preliminary report about the findings of the investigation is not expected until early next week.
CORRECTION
Thursday, December 29, 2005
» The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating whether a pilot might have landed and taken off from Hana Airport before a fatal crash Dec. 15, and if the pilot might have called for help on other radio transmission frequencies. A story on Page A6 Friday said the pilot was en route from Kahului Airport to Hana and did not call for help before the crash.
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