- Date
- August 5, 2009, 14:25 local (18:25 UTC)
- Place
- Mentone, IN
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N8099PVanderhoof Steve AIR Comman
- Defining event
- Landing: Loss of control in flight
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 19, 2009
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20090805048759A
- Case key
- 74470
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 pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control during the landing and subsequent impact with a parked aircraft.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The local airport was hosting an annual rotorcraft convention. Prior to the flight, the pilot had participated in the pilot's briefing and had been cleared to fly at the event. After flying to a nearby airport for lunch, the pilot was returning to the airport hosting the convention when the accident occurred. The pilot had entered a left hand traffic pattern for landing on runway 36. The air boss cleared the pilot to land and the pilot noticed "there was a lot of other aircraft activity." The pilot elected to extend his intended landing spot "past the majority of the aircraft... ." The pilot reported that "I hit the runway very hard and bounced on one wheel which veered me to the right in the direction of the east grass beside the runway. I was still going to be OK and continued to try and land. Then I was in the slow speed where the nose wheel is not on the ground yet and you are not able to steer and the rudder is becoming ineffective because of the slow airspeed and forward speed. I saw a [unoccupied] gyro parked close to the edge of the runway and it looked like I would clear it by a small margin. I powered up to put some airflow across the rudder in effort to steer clear of the gyro. I thought I had it made and then our rotors impacted and locked together. It flipped me over and dragged [the] gyro with mine." Examination of the accident gyrocraft revealed the main rotor blades were destroyed. No mechanical anomalies were noted with the accident gyrocraft.
Factual narrative
The local airport was hosting an annual rotorcraft convention. Prior to the flight, the pilot had participated in the pilot's briefing and had been cleared to fly at the event. After flying to a nearby airport for lunch, the pilot was returning to the airport hosting the convention when the accident occurred. The pilot had entered a left hand traffic pattern for landing on runway 36. The air boss cleared the pilot to land and the pilot noticed "there was a lot of other aircraft activity." The pilot elected to extend his intended landing spot "past the majority of the aircraft... ." The pilot reported that "I hit the runway very hard and bounced on one wheel which veered me to the right in the direction of the east grass beside the runway. I was still going to be OK and continued to try and land. Then I was in the slow speed where the nose wheel is not on the ground yet and you are not able to steer and the rudder is becoming ineffective because of the slow airspeed and forward speed. I saw a [unoccupied] gyro parked close to the edge of the runway and it looked like I would clear it by a small margin. I powered up to put some airflow across the rudder in effort to steer clear of the gyro. I thought I had it made and then our rotors impacted and locked together. It flipped me over and dragged [the] gyro with mine." Examination of the accident gyrocraft revealed the main rotor blades were destroyed. No mechanical anomalies were noted with the accident gyrocraft.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8099P
- Reported as
- Vanderhoof Steve AIR Comman
- Category
- Gyroplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 001
- Airframe hours
- 90
- Engine
- Rotax 503, 52 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Steve Vanderhoof
- Registered owner
- Vanderhoof Steve
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental light sport (Special)
- Last inspection
- Condition · April 8, 2009
- Departed
- RCR · Rochester, IN
- Destination
- C92 · Mentone, IN
- Airport
- C92 · Mentone Airport, runway 36, 2,521 × 40 ft, asphalt
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
- 60
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 9, 2009
- Seat
- Single
- Flight hours
- 1,282 total · 84 in this make and model · 1,090 as pilot in command · 13 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Variable at 10 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 82 °F
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 31, 2009, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 364 KB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.