Lt. Lance Leone (USCG photo)

A hearing began Wednesday in Juneau for a Sitka Coast Guard officer facing charges related to the deaths of two of his crewmates during a crash off the coast of Washington last year.

Lt. Lance Leone was the co-pilot of a Coast Guard Jayhawk helicopter that was being flown to its new assigned station in Sitka in July of last year. It crashed after striking power lines near La Push, Wash.

Leone was the only survivor. The pilot, Lt. Sean Krueger, and Aviation Maintenance Technicians Adam Hoke and Brett Banks were killed.

Tuesday, a civilian helicopter pilot who witnessed the helicopter flying near Long Beach testified that it appeared to be flying about 150-feet off the ground and as fast as 150-knots on the day of the crash. But under cross examination she admitted that she had sent an email to a Coast Guard officer days after the crash that indicated the chopper wasn’t flying quite that low and fast.

A Coast Guard mishap investigator testified that Leone’s helicopter traveled at an altitude that was too low and violated regulations for flight through two wildlife refuges. He also said the chopper was traveling at about 125-knots for most of the flight. That’s considered the normal maximum operational airspeed for preservation of the aircraft’s mechanics.

The investigator is Capt. Timothy Heitsch. KTOO reporter Matt Miller gave the following update to KCAW on Wednesday afternoon, after the hearing recessed for the day:

At midday, Leone’s defense counsel, government counsel, and the hearing’s investigating officer were listening to cockpit voice recorder tapes behind closed doors.

The Article 32 hearing was expected to reconvene in the open afterward. The hearing is much like a grand jury proceeding or preliminary hearing in civilian criminal court. But the accused has the ability to refute the Government’s evidence or cross- examine witnesses.

Related story: Hearing set for Coast Guard helo crash survivor (Dec. 2)

Proceedings are expected to last into Friday before the hearing’s investigating officer drafts a set of recommendations. He could call for dismissal of the charges, administrative or internal discipline, or a general court martial on the charges.

The final say rests with Rear Adm. Thomas Ostebo, commander of Coast Guard District 17.