Mililani due for brief break from noisy HECO project

Question: Helicopters have been flying over the densely populated Kapanoe subdivision in Mililani Mauka from Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. My understanding is that the old lychee farm in the neighborhood sold some of its acreage to HECO for a warehouse. Is there any action we can take to alleviate this incessant, invasive noise? It is becoming a huge quality-of-life issue for residents of this usually quiet subdivision. We are used to the military, law enforcement and fire/rescue using the area to train, but they use the airspace intermittently and serve a public purpose.

Answer: There is no law or regulation preventing Hawaiian Electric Co. from flying helicopters over residential neighborhoods, as long as the helicopters are not flying dangerously.

HECO is replacing aging transmission structures in Central Oahu, and there is no way to access the area without helicopters, said spokesman Peter Rosegg.

Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Administration does not regulate noise, and as long as helicopters and airplanes are not doing aerobatics or otherwise flying recklessly, they are allowed to fly at anytime, day or night, over a neighborhood.

But, while planes have to fly at least 1,000 feet above populated areas, helicopters do not have that minimum altitude restriction.

"Rather, helicopters must be flown so that they don’t pose a hazard to people or property on the ground," FAA spokesman Ian Gregor explained to Kokua Line previously. "This basically means that helicopter pilots have to fly in a manner that allows them to safely set down the helicopter if it loses all engine power."

That said, HECO says it knows its helicopters are "disruptive" and apologized for the flights, which will continue until foundation work is completed at the end of May or beginning of June, weather permitting.

After that there’ll be a respite, but flights will resume as needed as the project progresses. There is no final completion date at this point

Letters explaining the project were sent at the end of April to about 600 Mililani residents most likely to be affected by the flights, as well as to the Mililani-Mauka/Launani Valley Neighborhood Board, Rosegg said. A general advisory also was sent to the news media.

A construction hotline number, 543-5813, as well as a number for project manager Patrick Sullivan, 543-4004, were provided.

The Project

Rosegg explained the use of helicopters during work on transmission structures:

» Helicopters carrying loads — concrete, poles or other materials — do not fly over residential or populated areas to comply with FAA regulations and HECO’s own safety practices.

However, "A helicopter can be a safe distance from homes but still loud enough to be heard in those homes," Rosegg said. "There is a single staging area (above Mililani Mauka) where helicopters take off and land. Due to the proximity of that staging area to homes, the noise cannot be avoided."

For this project, he said no alternate staging area was available that was accessible for trucks and heavy equipment to deliver poles, structures and concrete while also meeting FAA requirements.

"We put a small portable office within the temporary yard and installed a temporary fence for security," Rosegg said. "We have built no permanent structures or warehouses at this location."

» A small helicopter transports crew and materials to and from the work sites, usually two or three round trips in the morning and at the end of the day; no flights in between.

» When concrete is transported, a larger, noisier helicopter is used, with almost continuous round trips throughout the day.

» There is a "quiet" period lasting at least several weeks while the concrete foundations cure in place. Mililani Mauka residents will get a "break" in helicopter activity at the end of May, beginning of June.

» The final phase involving erecting steel structures will again involve large

helicopters. However, the flights will be intermittent, sometimes involving only one or two round trips a day.

Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.