- Date
- May 27, 1998, 11:35 local (16:35 UTC)
- Place
- Monroe, WI
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N1025YWaters Vortex
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 15, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19980527011029A
- Case key
- 10893
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 rotor RPM. A factor associated with the accident was the soft terrain on which the gyrocopter touched down.
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 stated that shortly after departure while at about 1,200 feet above ground level, he felt the gyroplane slowing down and he noticed a loss of rotor RPM. He initiated an emergency descent and elected to land straight ahead in a cultivated field. The pilot initiated a 180 degree turn to avoid tree and the gyroplane descended to impact with the terrain. The left landing gear dug into the soft plowed field and the gyroplane rolled over onto its left side. Post accident inspection of the gyroplane failed to reveal any mechanical failure and/or malfunction which would have prevented normal operation. The pilot installed a pre-rotor system on the gyroplane the weekend before the accident.
Factual narrative
On May 27, 1998, at 1135 central daylight time (cdt), a Waters Vortex gyroplane, N1025Y, impacted the terrain during a forced landing after losing rotor rpm while en route to a private landing strip in Davis, Illinois. The pilot received minor injuries and the aircraft sustained substantial damage. The aircraft was being operated as a personal flight under 14 CFR Part 91 when the accident occurred. The flight originated in Monroe, Wisconsin, at 1125 cdt. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed.
The pilot stated that shortly after departure from Monroe Municipal Airport while at about 1,200 feet above ground level, he felt the gyroplane slowing down and he noticed a loss of rotor RPM. He initiated an emergency descent and elected to land straight ahead in a cultivated field. The pilot said he realized he was not going to clear the trees. He initiated a left 180 degree turn and continued his descent to where the gyroplane impacted the terrain.
The pilot reported that the left landing gear dug into the soft plowed field and the aircraft rolled over onto its left side.
Post accident inspection of the gyroplane by Inspectors from the Federal Aviation Administration's Milwaukee Flight Standards District Office failed to reveal any mechanical failure and/or malfunction of the gyroplane or the engine which would have prevented normal operation. The pilot installed a pre-rotor system on the gyroplane the weekend before the accident. Post accident inspection of the pre-rotor system failed to reveal any anomalies.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1025Y
- Reported as
- Waters Vortex
- Category
- Gyroplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 022
- Airframe hours
- 10
- Engine
- Rotax 582, 67 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Clyde E. Waters
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed
- EFT
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
- 70
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 2,360 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 10,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- EFT, 4 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.