Pilot Faces Manslaughter Charges

A Hawaiian pilot is facing a string of criminal charges, including manslaughter, in the crash of his sightseeing helicopter off Kauai last September. Glen Lampton, the flight’s pilot, was one of three who survived the crash a few hundred yards off Ke’e Beach, near Ha’ena. Three other passengers died. Lampton was to be arraigned Tuesday on three counts of manslaughter, two counts of second-degree reckless endangering, one count of falsifying records and one count of tampering with evidence. He was indicted by a grand jury last month. According to the NTSB report, the Heli USA helicopter took off for the scheduled 45-minute flight early on the afternoon of Sept. 23 and encountered bad weather about halfway into the flight. According to the Kauai Garden Island News, Heli USA vice president John Power said last month that Lampton’s helicopter had been hit by a microburst. He also pointed out that at least four helicopters from other tour companies were also flying that day.