# Incident 20110330005419I: Welt John L Jr HONEY BEE, Pinconning, MI, March 30, 2011

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 30, 2011, 16:30 local time
- Place: Pinconning, MI
- Airport: Gross, Pinconning
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Touchdown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Operator: N/A
- Location: 43.8577° N, 83.9641° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Pinconning, MI, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=43.8577&lon=-83.9641&mi=10
- Aircraft: N447JW, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N447JW-2018-02-09) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Welt John L JR HONEY BEE (registry code 056298J, https://openairdocs.org/model/welt-john-l-jr-honey-bee) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Rotax 447 (registry code 55576, https://openairdocs.org/engine/rotax-447) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: WELT JOHN L JR HONEY BEE
- Reported engine: ROTAX 447
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Student
- Pilot flight hours: 35 total, 15 in this make and model, 1 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20110330005419I

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

A STUDENT SPORT PILOT MADE A HARD LANDING ON MARCH30, 2011AT APPROXIMATELY 1630 HRS AT THE PINCONNING, MICHIGAN AIRPORT (GROSS 52I).THE STUDENT PILOT STATED THAT HE MADE A SMALL ADJUSTMENT TO THE HORIZONTAL STABILIZER AND WANTED TO SEE HOW MUCH OF A DIFFERENCE THE ADJUSTMENT HAD MADE. THE AUTO GYRO PLANE UNEXPECTEDLY GOT OFF THE GROUND AND HE HAD TO GO AROUND THE TRAFFIC PATTERN TO LAND. HE HAD NOTICED HIS DECENT WAS TOO STEEP AND COULD NOT CORRECT IN TIME AND LANDED HARD ON THE 2600 FOOT LONG AND 100 FEET WIDE TURF RUNWAY.HE SAID THAT AFTER HE HIT THE RUNWAY HARD THE EXPERIMENTAL BUILT AUTO GYRO BOUNCED 20 TO 25 FEET IN THE AIR. THE PLANE HAD TRICYCLE GEAR MADE OF FIBERGLASS AND WAS VERY SPRINGY.WHEN THE AIRCRAFT CAME DOWN THE SECOND TIME THE TWO BLADED MAIN ROTORS CONTACTED THE AFT ENGINE PROPELLER DAMAGING THE PROPELLER MAIN ROTOR AND VERTICAL STAB. THE PILOT WAS TAKEN TO A NEAR BY HOSPITAL   FOR A POSSIBLE CONCUSSION AS A PRECAUTION.WHEN I HAD CONTACTED HIM BY PHONE THE FOLLOWING DAY HE STATED THAT HE DIDN'T INTEND TO FLY BUT THE AUTOGYROPLANE GOT AIRBORNE BECAUSE OF THE HORIZONTAL STABILIZER ADJUSTMENT.HIS 90 DAY SOLO ENDORSEMENT HAD EXPIRED AND WAS NOT CURRENT TO FLY SOLO.

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.