Citing federal preemption, the U.S. District Court for Hawaii this week struck down a state requirement for air tour operators to provide detailed reports of their operations. At dispute was a section of Hawaii Act 311, signed into law in July 2022, calling for the state to adopt rules to regulate air tour operations through permits with detailed monthly reporting requirements.
Permitted operators would have been required to submit monthly written reports of each tour, including the date and time of takeoff and landing, the number of individuals on the aircraft, the flight path, and whether deviations to that flight path occurred.
The state legislature said the act was intended to enable the state to monitor compliance with federal regulations and formally establish an air noise and safety task force. State committees and task forces had expressed concern about “excessive noise and safety hazards posed by tour helicopters and small aircraft.”