Lawsuit seeks to limit helicopter traffic over Big Island

HILO, Hawaii – A Big Island group has filed a lawsuit against the Federal Aviation Administration seeking to limit helicopter traffic over the island.

The Hawaii Tribune-Herald reports the Hawaii Island Coalition Malama Pono, also known as HICoP, will submit oral arguments in a lawsuit against the FAA Nov. 1.

The group’s leader Bob Ernst says they have complained about helicopter noise on the island for 40 years and tried addressing the issue through other methods, but have gotten nowhere.

The group’s lawsuit seeks an injunction for the FAA to implement an Air Tour Management plan over Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The plan would regulate air traffic above national parks in order to “mitigate or prevent the significant adverse impacts, if any, of commercial air tour operations upon the natural and cultural resources, visitor experiences, and tribal lands.”

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Information from: Hawaii Tribune-Herald, http://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/