Clear skies reported at time of fatal crash
By Christie Wilson
Advertiser Neighbor Island Editor
KAHULUI, Maui — A helicopter pilot working in the mountains above Hana on Dec. 15 reported clear skies with little wind and no turbulence around the time a single-engine Cessna crashed nearby, killing the plane's pilot.
A preliminary report released yesterday by the National Transportation Safety Board said the unidentified helicopter pilot didn't see or hear the small plane approach or hit Haleakala three miles southwest of the Hana Airport. But he spotted smoke rising from the wreckage about 100 yards from where he was working on a miconia eradication project with the National Park Service.
Alan Gerow, 58, of Salt Lake City, was killed in the crash. Gerow rented the Cessna 172S from Maui Aviators at Kahului Airport and was planning to fly to Hana and return to Kahului later in the day, the NTSB report said.
The cause of the crash has not been determined.
Gerow had taken the airplane on a checkout flight with a certified flight instructor on Nov. 26. After an hour of ground instruction, they took off and flew toward Hana but did not land, the NTSB report said. However, Gerow completed a series of maneuvers and made seven landings at Kahului Airport during the flight, which lasted an hour and 20 minutes.
Gerow reserved the plane for noon to 5 p.m. Dec. 15 and for the following day.
On Dec. 15, he arrived at Maui Aviators at 10:30 a.m. and took off at 12:30 p.m. with a full tank of fuel, the NTSB report said. The Cessna crashed at the 2,400-foot elevation on a 75-degree slope. It takes only about a half-hour to fly from Kahului to Hana in a small plane.
The helicopter pilot on the miconia mission flew to the crash site within seconds of spotting the smoke at 3:50 p.m. He told the NTSB that he saw the wreckage, and that it appeared the airplane was flying in a west-southwest direction prior to impact.
The Maui Fire Department was notified and dispatched a helicopter to the scene. Darkness and rugged terrain prevented a thorough search of the crash site, and a recovery team returned Dec. 16 to dig Gerow's remains out of the buried cockpit.
A report on the probable cause of the plane crash is not expected for months.
Reach Christie Wilson at cwilson@honoluluadvertiser.com.
