- Date
- May 16, 1991, 17:00 local (May 17, 1991, 00:00 UTC)
- Place
- Long Beach, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N6126SFarrington 18A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 14, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910516016249A
- Case key
- 27210
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
Ground resonance remedial action not performed by the pilot.
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 certificated ATP pilot stated that he had completed a normal checklist. He stated there was a normal spin up on the runway and rotor RPM was attained with no sign of ground resonance. Everything was normal on takeoff run to 30 knots. At 31 knots the pilot proceeded to preposition stick to the left and push lift button. The aircraft encountered violent ground resonance simultaneously at lift off. Gyroplane continued shaking violently and swerved to the left colliding with the ground. The pilot stated to the FAA he was unsure whether or not he had actually pressed the engage switch or that he had become airborne.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6126S
- Reported as
- Farrington 18A
- Category
- Gyroplane
- Serial number
- 18-32
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Novo Helicopter
- Registered owner
- Frank Savvours
- Departed
- LGB · Long Beach, CA
- Airport
- LGB · Long Beach, runway 25, 5,000 × 150 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
- 47
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land, Multi-engine sea, Single-engine sea
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 13,000 total · 20 in this make and model · 8,000 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 200° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N6126S · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.