HVNP Announces Flight Operations For May

Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park has announced its flight operations for May 2021. They are as follows:

-May 3, 4, 7, 17, and 21, between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m., for personnel and fence material sling loads from the Kapapala Forest Reserve boundary at 4,300-ft. elevation to the Kahuku boundary around 7,200-ft. elevation.
-May 7, between 10 a.m. and noon, to remove lua waste, beach trash and gear from ʻĀpua Point, Keauhou and Halapē coastal backcountry campsites, between sea level and 1,000-ft. elevation.
-May 12, between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m., for vegetation surveys in ʻŌlaʻa Tract and Kīlauea volcano’s East Rift Zone, between 2,500- and 4,500-ft. elevation. 
-May 18 and 19, between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m., for Hawaiian petrel monitoring on Mauna Loa between 6,000- and 9000-ft. elevation.
-May 19, between 8 a.m. and noon, for invasive banana poka surveys and control on Mauna Loa between 5,000- and 6,400-ft. elevation. 

In addition, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory may conduct flight operations over Kīlauea and Mauna Loa to assess volcanic activity and maintain instrumentation. The park, in a press release, apologized for any noise impact to residents and park visitors. Dates and times are subject to change based on aircraft availability and weather. 

Management of the park requires the use of aircraft to monitor and research volcanic activity, conduct search-and-rescue missions and law enforcement operations, support management of natural and cultural resources, and to maintain backcountry facilities.