19990127000789I

Incident · Substantial damage

FAA incident report · Amtr AIRCMDRAC503 · Centre Hall, PA · January 27, 1999

Date: January 27, 1999 · 17:20 local
Place: Centre Hall, PA
Airport: Centre Airpark Airport
Phase of flight: Unauth Low Level Opns
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Substantial damage
Aircraft: N52910
NTSB investigation: NTSBNYC99LA053
Reported as: Amtr AIRCMDRAC503
Reported engine: ROTAX ROTAX503
People aboard: 1
Fatal injuries: 0
Pilot’s flight hours: 940 total13 in the last 90 days

N52910Registration cancelled Nov 6, 1999 · Grove Robert I AIR COMMANDS/N RIG 1 Airframe modelGrove Robert I AIR COMMAND

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

Experimental air command gyrocopter crashed into a field under unknown circumstances 1/2 mile nw of Centre airpark.(-5) the gyroplane took off and flew around a witness's house. It then headed toward the northwest, and collided with a nearby power line. The pilot stated that the last thing he remembered was being blinded by the sun.

As the FAA filed it

EXPERIMENTAL AIR COMMAND GYROCOPTER CRASHED INTO A FIELD UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES 1/2 MILE NW OF CENTRE AIRPARK.(-5) THE GYROPLANE TOOK OFF AND FLEW AROUND A WITNESS'S HOUSE. IT THEN HEADED TOWARD THE NORTHWEST, AND COLLIDED WITH A NEARBY POWER LINE. THE PILOT STATED THAT THE LAST THING HE REMEMBERED WAS BEING BLINDED BY THE SUN.

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.

NTSB NYC99LA053Accident · Serious injuriesLimited investigationFinal reportCentre Hall, PAThe pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a power line. A factor was the sunglare.Jan 27, 1999 · Substantial damage