- Date
- June 2, 1994, 00:00 local (04:00 UTC)
- Place
- East Moriches, NY
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Unknown
- Aircraft
- N263MPPecchio Marchetti 263MP
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 31, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19940602013389A
- Case key
- 8925
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
the loss of control for undetermined reasons resulting in an uncontrolled descent and a subsequent collision with trees.
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
An eye-witness located about one mile from the accident site, saw the gyrocopter enter a left turn and descending spiral. The witness lost sight of the aircraft before impact. The president of the rotorcraft association reported, '...[the pilot] stated...that the rotorblades on his machine became 'twitchy' and made the controls extremely sensitive when the gyro reached 55 mph, and therefore he did not exceed 50 mph....[the pilot] also stated to friends...that he had a 'hairy vibration' at times and could not figure out the source of the vibration....' The FAA inspector stated, '...the aircraft was inspected at the crash site...and although the aircraft was destroyed, no evidence of a mechanical failure could be detected....'
Factual narrative
On June 2, 1994, at an undetermined time, a Pecchio Marchetti 263MP, N263MP, an experimental gyrocopter, was destroyed after colliding with trees and the terrain, near East Moriches, New York. The commercial pilot received fatal injuries. The gyrocopter departed East Moriches, about 1245 eastern daylight time, for the local flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan was not filed for the personal flight conducted under CFR 14 Part 91.
Federal Aviation Administration Inspectors examined the wreckage, and in a report, stated:
...The aircraft was inspected at the crash site on June 2, 1994, and although the aircraft was destroyed, no evidence of a mechanical failure could be detected at that time. The aircraft maintenance log book was examined with no discrepancies noted....
The President of the Popular Rotorcraft Association submitted a report, in which he stated:
...We do know that Martin [the pilot] stated...that the rotorblades on his machine became "twitchy" and made the controls extremely sensitive when the gyro reached 55 MPH, and therefore he did not exceed 50 MPH when flying. Martin also stated to friends...that he had a "hairy vibration" at times and could not figure out the source of the vibration....
In his report, he continued:
...In talking to people, we found that Martin said he had a severe vibration when he hit 55 MPH, so he set his Vne [never exceed velocity] not to exceed 50 MPH. He described it as a scary vibration that shook the aircraft and was trying to determine what it was. We do know that the day of the accident was the windiest day he was up, with the nearest reported winds gusting to 20 MPH. It got even windier that afternoon on Eastern Long Island, but we believe that Martin had already crashed....An eye witness who was a farm worker about a mile away reported that he saw Martin flying high...when he went into a left turn and spiraled to the ground, out of sight to the witness....
Aircraft
- Registration
- N263MP
- Reported as
- Pecchio Marchetti 263MP (MARCHETTI)
- Category
- Gyroplane, amateur-built
- Engine
- Subaru EJ18, 110 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Martin L. Pecchio
- Departed
- 1N2 · NY
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
- 31
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Single-engine sea
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 500 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 10 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 7,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 70 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- ISP, 17 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.