The air tour company operating the missing Cessna 172M has been in business since 1986 and calls itself the largest and oldest Big Island air tour company.

Island Hoppers boasts of its safety record on its Web site, www.fly-hawaii.com. The company says it and its employees are "proud of our 18-year fatality-free operation history, and make safety our number one priority."

Tours leave from either Hilo or Kona on three- and seven-passenger airplanes. It is not clear how many planes are in its fleet.

"Airplanes provide a safer, quieter, and smoother ride than helicopters, taking you up close to view the active volcano, rainforests, hidden valleys, waterfalls, migrating whales (in season) and more," the Web site said.

The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is the best-selling airplane ever made, with more than 43,000 delivered since it was first produced in 1956. The missing Cessna 172M was manufactured in 1974. It's a fixed-wing, propeller airplane powered by a single four-cycle engine, according to National Transportation Safety Board records.

The NTSB has tracked 105 fatal crashes involving Cessna 172 aircraft over the past five years. Those crashes resulted in the deaths of 213 people.

On its Web site, Island Hoppers said it has "special deviation" from the Federal Aviation Administration to fly as low as 1,000 feet.

In response to one of the frequently asked questions on the site about whether flights over the volcano are safe, the company said: "The entire Hawai'i aerial tour industry has an enviable safety record, with incidents substantially below national averages. Island Hoppers has one of the Hawai'i air tour industry's best safety records, since its inception in 1986.

"This is due primarily to our high maintenance standards, with maintenance intervals performed at twice the legally required rates. In addition, every pilot on our staff is also a licensed FAA instructor, possessing superior demonstrated skills and judgement. We are an FAA certified air carrier, and meet stringent performance and maintenance standards."