Tour helicopter carrying seven people ‘including two children’ missing off Hawaiian island of Kauai

Coast Guard and Navy search for tour helicopter carrying seven people ‘including two children’ missing off Hawaiian island of Kauai

  • The helicopter had been on a tour of Kauai’s Na Pali Coast in Hawaii on Thursday
  • It had an electronic locator on board but no signals have since been received
  • There was one pilot and six passengers on board – two of whom are minors

A tour helicopter with seven people aboard has gone missing off the Hawaiian island of Kauai, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

The owner of the helicopter contacted the authorities just over 45 minutes after the aircraft was due back from a tour of Kauai’s Na Pali Coast. 

The helicopter has an electronic locator but no signals had been received since that time, according to the bulletin released late on Thursday.

A tour helicopter with seven people aboard has gone missing off Hawaiian island of Kauai (stock image), according to the U.S. Coast Guard

The helicopter was carrying a pilot and six passengers – two of whom are believed to be minors.

Petty Officer 1st Class Robert Cox, from the Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu, said: ‘The weather conditions are challenging.

‘We have trained crews responding and on scene searching for any signs of the helicopter and those aboard.’

It is thought that clouds and rain at the scene have rendered visibility at 6.4 kilometers (four miles) alongside gusts of winds at 45 kmph (28 mph).  

The helicopter was carrying a pilot and six passengers - two of whom are believed to be minors. Helicopter tours are common above the island of Kauai, much of which is a state park (pictured)

The helicopter was carrying a pilot and six passengers – two of whom are believed to be minors. Helicopter tours are common above the island of Kauai, much of which is a state park (pictured)

Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, alongside coordinated additional support from the U.S. Navy Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 37 at Kaneohe Bay, launched a helicopter and crew to carry out a search. 

A second Coast Guard cutter and crew were also launched from their homeport in Honolulu. 

Further searches with a search-and-rescue airplane and fresh helicopter crew have been scheduled for first light, should they still be required.

Helicopter tours are common above the island of Kauai, much of which is a state park, according to the Coast Guard’s press release.

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