The Maui News - Weekender

Company behind Oahu plane crash did not have proper permits

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HONOLULU (AP) — The Hawaii skydiving company that was operating a plane that crashed and killed 11 people last month did not have the proper permits, according to documents released by the state Wednesday.

The documents show Oahu Parachute Center was “not in good standing” with the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs as of April. It was also not a registered tenant for the state land it occupied at the airport.

The owner, George Rivera, was granted a permit in 2010 for a company under a different name — Hawaii Parachute Center — that allowed parachute repairs and rigging, but not skydiving operations.

State business records show Oahu Parachute Center was establishe­d in 2017, but the state never granted the company a permit to give skydiving tours.

Two years later, on April 16, the Department of Transporta­tion Airports Division sent Rivera a cease and desist letter giving him until May 15 to produce tax and other business documents.

Then, on June 5 — two weeks before the crash — officials sent a permit applicatio­n for skydiving operations to Rivera.

The applicatio­n gave him 30 days to produce documents including tax clearance certificat­es for both the county and the state, a certificat­e of good standing from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, a certificat­e of registrati­on and proof of ownership for the plane, the aircraft’s log books and inspection records, a certificat­ion of airworthin­ess and proof of insurance.

It also required payment of nearly $30,000 for a security deposit and rent for the space the company was using on state airport land.

Rivera did not submit the permitting documents before the plane rolled upside down and crashed shortly after takeoff on June 21. Five days after the crash the state revoked the 2010 permit and evicted the company from its space at the airport, citing violations.

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