# Accident 19980825021859A: Amtr TWINSTAR, Paducah, KY, August 25, 1998 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: August 25, 1998, 16:00 local time - Place: Paducah, KY - Airport: West Kentucky Airpark Airport - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Final Approach - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 37.0702° N, 88.6306° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=37.0702&lon=-88.6306&mi=10 - Aircraft: N72DE, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N72DE) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Ekstrom Dave TWINSTARR (registry code 13015DF, https://openairdocs.org/model/ekstrom-dave-twinstarr) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: AMTR TWINSTAR - Reported engine: LYC O320A2B - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 168 total, 14 in this make and model, 14 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC98LA172](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC98LA172) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980825021859A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ACFT CRASHED ON LANDING UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES. (-23) ON AUGUST 25, 1998, AT APPROXIMATELY 1600 CDT, AN EXPERIMENTAL-AMATEUR BUILT, TWIN-STAR GYROPLANE, N72DE, RECEIVED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE AS A RESULT OF AN ACCIDENT AT THE FARRINGTON AIRPARK, PADUCAH, KY. THE AIRCRAFT PILOTED BY AN AIRPLANE RATED PRIVATE PILOT WHO POSSESSED A SOLO ENDORSEMENT FOR GYROPLANES, WAS EXECUTING A NORMAL APPROACH TO LANDING ON RUNWAY 22. ACCORDING TO THE PILOT'S STATEMENT, AT APPROXIMATELY 15 FEET AND 60 KNOTS IAS ABOVE THE RUNWAY, THE AIRCRAFT WENT INTO AN UNCOMMANDED 185 DEGREE RIGHT TURN BEFORE COMING TO A REST IN THE SOD ADJACENT TO THE RUNWAY 22 LANDING THRESHOLD. INFORMATION GATHERED FROM THE INVESTIGATION APPEARS TO INDICATE THAT A BOLT (AN TYPE) WITH A LOCKING NUT FAILED, THUS SEPARATING THE RIGHT PITCH HORN FROM THE YOKE ASSEMBLY. MAINTENANCE RECORDS INDICATE THAT THE AIRCRAFT UNDERWENT A CONDITION INSPECTION IAW WITH 14 CFR 43 APPENDIX D AND WAS RETURNED TO SERVICE ON AUGUST 13, 1998. THERE WERE NO INDICATIONS FROM THE MAINTENANCE RECORDS, OR FROM MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL THAT WORK WAS PERFORMED ON THE PITCH HORNS OR YOKE ASSEMBLY PREVIOUS TO THE ACCIDENT. THE PILOT RECEIVED NO INJURIES AND THERE WAS NO POST CRASH FIRE. WEATHER AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT WAS VFR WITH WINDS FROM 240 DEGREES AT 6 KNOTS. (.4) THE GYROPLANE WAS ON SHORT FINAL, ABOUT 15 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND, WHEN IT WENT INTO AN UNCOMMANDED RIGHT TURN AND RIGHT ROLL. THE HEADING CHANGED 180 DEGREES, AND THE GYROPLANE IMPACTED SOD NEAR THE RUNWAY THRESHOLD. THE GYROPLANE HAD A ROTOR BRAKE MECHANISM WHICH WAS ACTIVATED BY PUSHING THE CYCLIC CONTROL FULL FORWARD. A THROUGH-BOLT WHICH HAD ATTACHED THE TWO LATERAL CONTROL ARMS TO THE YOKE ASSEMBLY, WAS DISCOVERED MISSING, AND THE RIGHT LATERAL CONTROL ARM HAD SEPARATED FROM THE YOKE ASSEMBLY. THE KIT MANUFACTURER WAS CONSIDERING IMPLEMENTING A CLAMP-TYPE ROTOR BRAKE SYSTEM, MUCH LIKE A BICYCLE'S, TO PREVENT ROTOR BRAKE FORCES FROM PASSING THROUGH THE FLIGHT CONTROL SYSTEM. ## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB NYC98LA172](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC98LA172), Aug 25, 1998: Ekstrom-Farrington Twinstar (N72DE), Paducah, KY, substantial damage. Probable cause: Failure of a through-bolt that attached the lateral control arms to the yoke assembly, due to unanticipated rotor brake forces through the flight control system. ## Other reports on N72DE (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 20200705008079I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200705008079I), Jul 5, 2020: Ekstrom Dave TWINSTARR (N72DE), Greencastle, IN, Minor damage. On July 5, 2020, at approximately 12:35 EDT, N72DE, an experimental amateur built gyrocopter, experienced an off airport landing approximately 1/8 of a mile… From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.