20020526010489A

(.19) On may 26, 2002, at 1024 eastern daylight time, a barnett J4B-2 homebuilt gyrocopter, N8121M, was substantially damaged during landing to the sod adjacent to runway 25 at central Jersey regional airport (47N), Manville, new Jersey. The certificated private pilot/owner received minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight conducted under 14 CFR part 91. During a telephone interview, a pilot-rated witness said he watched the gyrocopter as it flew traffic patterns around the airport, and on the accident flight. He said he observed the flight of the gyrocopter from the parking ramp, as he secured an airplane. "On this approach, instead of lining up on the runway, he was over the grass. What looked weird was the way he was approaching, like it was a step-down approach. He leveled off at 200 feet, cut the power, dived down and leveled off at 100 feet, cut the power, then leveled at 50 feet. The last time he cut the power he was like, nose-down, straight down to the ground. Not quite straight down, but there was no flare; it looked to me. It looked like something snapped, or broke, the way it pointed towards the ground." The witness described the engine noise as "solid", with no sputtering or missing. During a telephone interview, a second witness said that he had seen the gyrocopter perform takeoffs, landings, and traffic-pattern flights earlier in the day. At the time of the accident, he was walking out to his airplane when he noticed the gyrocopter approach the grass for landing. The witness stated that the gyrocopter crossed abeam the landing threshold of the runway about 200 feet above the ground. He said the approach was fast, and that the gyrocopter landed down at the departure end of the airfield. The witness said the gyrocopter rolled over as soon as it made contact with the ground. When asked about the sound of the engine, he said it sounded "fine." During a telephone interview, a third witness that managed the local flight school stated that the gyrocopter had flown the length of the field at low altitude, landed, and taxied back several times prior to the accident. The witness said that he did not see the accident flight, but heard the gyrocopter make contact with the ground. He then drove to the site to assist the pilot. During a telephone interview, the pilot said he had been performing taxi tests of the gyrocopter during the weekend. When asked if these were post-maintenance tests, he said no. according to the pilot: "I was doing taxi tests on Saturday and Sunday. You see, I never really flew the aircraft. I was in the process of getting it ready to fly. On the last run, I took off on runway 25, but I didn't think there was enough room to land, so I decided to do a go-around. I did a little crosswind, downwind, base-to-final." "I didn't really mean to get airborne. I was doing taxi tests and it got airborne. It got up about 20 feet. It drifted left over the grass, so I decided to land on the grass. When I did, I touched down in a hole, or I bounced, and I rolled over. And when these things roll over, they roll up into a ball." The pilot was asked if he was aligned with the paved runway when he turned from the base leg of the pattern for his final approach to land. He said that when he completed the turn, he was aligned with the grass apron, and elected to continue on his heading to land on the grass adjacent to the runway. When asked about the performance and handling of the gyrocopter, the pilot said, "it was very, very good." The gyrocopter was examine d at the scene by federal aviation administration aviation safety inspectors. During a telephone interview, one inspector said that examination of the wreckage revealed no mechanical anomalies. The pilot held a private pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single engine land. He did not possess a rating or a student endorsement for rotorcraft/gyrocopter. The pilot reported about 200 hours of total flight experience, none of which was in the accident gyrocopter. He added that he had flown an ultra-light gyrocopter for about two years. The weather reported at somerville, new Jersey, about 7 miles northwest of Manville, included calm winds with 9 miles of visibility. (-23) after completing at least three (3) takeoffs and landings, the pilot stated he was attempting his last landing. During his final approach to runway 25 at central Jersey regional airport, the pilot stated he ascended to approximately 100 feet and began to settle to the runway. The pilot stated the aircraft drifted to the left over a grassy area where the tail propeller struck the ground causing the aircraft to pitch forward, strike the groun d with the nose and collapsed the fuselage near center, breaking the aircraft in two pieces with only cables holding it together. The only injuries to the pilot were minor, no passengers were on board. The weather at the time of the accident was VMC and winds were reported as light and variable.