3 dead, 1 missing in Coast Guard helicopter crash
By on
September 5th, 2008
A Coast Guard HH-65 Dolphin helicopter crashed last night during a search-and-rescue training exercise six miles off Sand Island, killing three of four crewmembers aboard.
The HH-65 Dolphin was conducting general search-and-rescue drills with a 47-foot motorized lifeboat before the accident, said Lt. John Titchen, Coast Guard spokesman.
Rescuers arrived at the crash site about 8:45 p.m. and found three crew members, three victims have been recovered with no sign of life. Rescue teams continue to search for the fourth passenger..
Firefighters set up a command post at Keehi Lagoon Harbor and sent three boats and a helicopter to search. A Coast Guard helicopter was taking survivors to the Queen’s Medical Center, Seelig said.
The Coast Guard was searching with a helicopter, a C-130 Hercules aircraft and a 41-foot vessel, he said. The Navy was also assisting.
The Coast Guard was notified of the accident by the Federal Aviation Administration at 8:15 p.m., Titchen said.
Manufactured by Aerospatiale, the HH-65 is 13 feet tall and 44 feet long and is not capable of water landings. It normally carries a pilot, co-pilot, flight mechanic and rescue swimmer.
The most recent Coast Guard helicopter accident in Hawaii occurred on Jan. 7, 1982, when an HH-52 Sea Guard crashed into the cliffs of Molokai during a rescue mission in bad weather. The crash killed three people, including the Coast Guard’s first female helicopter pilot, Lt. Colleen Cain, 29. The other fatalities were Lt. Cmdr. Horton “Buzz” Johnson, the chief pilot, and Petty Officer 2nd Class David Thompson.
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