LIHUE — A local tour flight operator died in a Mainland crash along with a passenger on Sunday, leaving a widow and two young daughters. Robin Francis Venuti, 38, of Washington, Utah, and his brother-in-law, Albert Munoz Rubio, 36, of
LIHUE — A local tour flight operator died in a Mainland crash along with a passenger on Sunday, leaving a widow and two young daughters.
Robin Francis Venuti, 38, of Washington, Utah, and his brother-in-law, Albert Munoz Rubio, 36, of Beaver Utah, reportedly died sometime Sunday in a remote area of southern Utah.
Robin and Dana Venuti took over Inter-Island Helicopter in 2010. The 24-year-old company flies out of Hanapepe.
Staff of Inter-Island Helicopter referred calls regarding the death of Venuti to a family member, who said they could not make statements at this point in the grieving process. The family is waiting for direction from widow and co-owner Dana Venuti and their two daughters, Lexi and Bella.
According to his business profile, Robin Venuti was raised in Escalante, Utah. He started his career at HeliTech in Riverside, Calif., before completing private, commercial and CFI courses in various aircraft to qualify as a lead instructor.
After Venuti and Rubio were reported overdue from a Sunday morning helicopter flight, the Utah Department of Public Safety initiated a helicopter search using infrared cameras on Sunday evening. The effort was suspended about midnight. The search resumed Monday morning. A Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter located the crash site on the west side of Desolation Canyon, about 40 river miles north of Green River, about 2:30 p.m. Monday.
Investigators confirmed there were no survivors. The bodies were recovered and transported by DPS helicopter to an Emery County off-road ambulance at 6:45 p.m.
The FAA is handling the crash investigation.
