Air Rescue

Pacific Helicopters, Inc. is an FAA Approved, CPR Certified Emergency First Responder in Search & Rescue Operations for the safety of the people of Hawaii.

Pacific Helicopter Tours, Inc. has helped save lives on several occasions during the last two decades. One of the more eventful rescues was from the Motion Picture Crew that crashed into the Pu'u O'o Vent of Kilauea Crater on the Big Island of Hawaii.

After several attempts to rescue the crash victims from the Crater without much success, Pacific Helicopter Tours was called in to make the attempt. The last victim of the crash was trapped in the crater for three days and attempts at the final rescue were becoming exhausted.

Tom Hauptman of Pacific Helicopter used a "Billy Pugh Net" to fish the last survivor out of the crater even though the visibility was totally obscured by the toxic fumes from the crater.

On another occasion two tourists had managed to trap themselves on the rocks in the middle of the stream at the "Seven Sacred Pools" in Hana, the rain poured down on them so hard that the water level began to rise until the tourists were trapped on the rocks with no escape. They were airlifted to safety by Pacific Helicopter Tours, Inc.

Pacific Helicopter Tours, Inc. continues to bring valuable aviation logistics support to the State of Hawaii. The Search & Rescue efforts we have been able to provide add to the list of statewide accomplishments in Specialized Air Cargo and Passenger Transport Services.

Kahului Heliport Hangar #109
Kahului, Hawaii 96732
Phone: 808.871.9771
FAX: 808.871.5806