On Windows, if the PATH environment variable contains a directory with an installed hdf4/5 java library, then that will be found at HDFView runtime. If HDFView was set up via a binary or installer distribution, the PATH HDF4/5 will be used instead of the packaged hdf4/5 version. This can lead to JVM crashing if there's a version mismatch.
The bundled HDF4/5 should be prioritized over the ones on PATH, if possible.
This issue may not be exclusive to Windows.