- Date
- November 29, 1984, 13:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place
- Tracy, CA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4853ADonald W Devine Executive
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19841129069269A
- Case key
- 24598
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 homebuilt helicopter crashed while on an unauthorized solo flight. The plt stated that after he completed building the helicopter he acquired proficiency by operating the eng & hovering about in his 3 acre backyard. He said he had flown for about 45 mins & gained more altitude than intended. When he touched down the soft ground retarded the forward movement, the main rotor hit the ground, the helicopter rolled over & caught fire.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4853A
- Reported as
- Donald W Devine Executive
- Category
- Helicopter, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 18437316
- Airframe hours
- 10
- Engine
- Rotorway ROTORWAY EXEC, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Donald W. Devine
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 1, 1984 · 10 hours before
- Departed
- Tracy, CA
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
- 51
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 9 total · 9 in this make and model · 4 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 135° at 15 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 61 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.