- Date
- March 25, 1989, 11:00 local (16:00 UTC)
- Place
- Lugoff, SC
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N70289Upchurch Rotorway Executive
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 29, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890325004919A
- Case key
- 7841
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
Improper evaluation of existing conditions during preflight inspection resulting in a dynamic rollover due to drag from an imbedded left skid.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot said he lost control of the aircraft during an attempted takeoff to a hover as a result of the left skid being slightly embedded in soft earth. The rotors came into contact with the ground causing a dynamic rollover. The 21-hour student pilot/builder was not injured and the aircraft was destroyed.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N70289
- Reported as
- Upchurch Rotorway Executive (ROTORWAY E)
- Category
- Helicopter, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 10001
- Airframe hours
- 10
- Engine
- Rotorway RW 152/D, 152 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Joseph M. Upchurch
- Registered owner
- Up-Air, Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Unknown · March 25, 1989 · 1 hours before
- Departed
- PVT · Lugoff, SC
- Airport
- Private
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 49
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 21 total · 21 in this make and model · 10 as pilot in command · 16 in the last 90 days · 11 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 61 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.