Crash study cites abnormal flight path
And air ambulance was seen flying low before a collision in January 2004
Associated Press
The flight path taken by an air ambulance that crashed two years ago on the Big Island, killing three men aboard, was "not normal," according to a new report.
The accident claimed the lives of pilot Ron Laubacher, 38, and paramedics Joseph Daniel Villiaros, 39, and Mandy Shiraki, 47. They crashed along the slopes of Mauna Kea during a flight from Honolulu to Hilo, where they were to pick up an ailing boy.
The twin-engine Cessna 414A was spotted flying low by an off-duty police officer moments before the aircraft hit trees and crashed near Laupahoehoe, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a report.
COURTESY PHOTO
A National Transportation Safety Board report found that a Hawaii Air Ambulance plane hit a tree branch before losing its right engine, propellers and wings.
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The officer, who lives at the 3,526-foot elevation in Umikoa Village, reported hearing the low-flying airplane coming from the north at 1:30 a.m. on Jan. 21, 2004. He went outside and saw the plane pass about 500 feet above ground.
He said there was light rain at the time and the plane was headed south, according to his compass.
The Cessna, operated by Hawaii Air Ambulance, crashed about 10 minutes later, 3.4 miles away from the officer's home.
The pilot was operating under visual flight rules.
"The normal visual approach into Hilo was to fly over Upolo point at 9,500 feet, and then begin descent about 15-20 miles later.
"For (instrument flight rules), they would fly the airways out over the water. The accident flight path was not normal," the NTSB said.
Hawaii Air Ambulance's director of operations told the NTSB that the company normally operated under visual flight rules, even at night or with expectations of encountering weather.
That's because instrument flight rules held up flights, while operating under visual flight rules helped them get to patients faster.
An autopsy performed on Laubacher, who was on the fourth and final day of his shift, found diphenhydramine in his liver and kidney.
Diphenhydramine is used in sleeping pills and medication for allergies, colds and motion sickness.
The NTSB also found the plane hit a tree branch about 80 feet above ground before losing its right engine, propellers and wings.
The agency also said there were scattered clouds, and mist restricted visibility at the time.
The NTSB document is a fact-finding report and does not list the exact cause of the crash.