- Date
- November 21, 1988, 18:11 local (Nov 22, 1988, 02:11 UTC)
- Place
- Palo Alto, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N6113SAir & Space 18A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/bright
- Status
- Completed · report January 4, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19881122051489A
- Case key
- 26303
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 pilot stated that he lost directional control of the gyroplane during the landing roll, departed the rwy and nosed over. The gyroplane touched down normally on the main landing gear at an indicated airspeed of about 20 mph. As the gyroplane slowed further, the nose wheel touched down on the runway and tracked the centerline for about ten feet then veered to the left. The pilot stated that he attempted to correct the gyroplane's ground track by applying the right rudder and brake, but the gyroplane continued to tighten in the left turn. Inspection of the nose gear assembly revealed a crack in the nose wheel shimmy damper upper phenolic collar. The crack in the collar resulted in the nose wheel strut becoming locked and not allowing nose wheel steering.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6113S
- Reported as
- Air & Space 18A
- Category
- Gyroplane
- Serial number
- 18-19
- Airframe hours
- 397
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1D, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Rienhard, Joesph, doing business as Pegasus Rotorcraft
- Registered owner
- Joseph Reinhard
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · October 18, 1988 · 62 hours before
- Airport
- PAO · Palo Alto, runway 30, 2,500 × 75 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
- 31
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 1,100 total · 26 in this make and model · 920 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/bright
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 4 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 10,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 50 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.