HONOLULU -- Salvage crews Sunday pulled up the wreckage of a tour helicopter that crashed off Kauai on Friday, killing three people. As the helicopter was being brought up out of the ocean, investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board were interviewing survivors.

A UH-1 Vietnam-era Huey helicopter was brought in from Maui to do the heavy lifting. First, divers went out to the wreck site on a boat to prepare the cables and slings. The first attempt didn't go so well. The tail of the downed helicopter broke the surface briefly, but then the wreckage came apart. A piece of the rotor and the rear stabilizer came free and that was lifted to shore.

Parts of the aircraft could yield important clues in the crash investigation.

The Heli-USA tour helicopter crashed Friday in bad weather 20 yards off the north shore of Kauai. Three passengers died, the pilot and two other passengers -- a man and wife, survived.

The NTSB said the survivors described flying into a wall of rain and wind before hitting the ocean.

On the second lift the battered fuselage was brought up. It was evident that the helicopter had crashed onto its right side.

They brought the wreckage to the beach because they weren't sure it was stable enough to travel farther. Once they were sure it was secure, they moved it inland.

The NTSB said the pilot had about 16 years experience flying in the military and in news helicopters. Although it appears the weather was the main factor, investigators said they will look for any mechanical problems or pilot error.