- Date
- April 21, 2001, 19:00 local (Apr 22, 2001, 00:00 UTC)
- Place
- Troy, AL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N218DHDavid G. Holmes Bensen Gyrocopter
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 27, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20010421010019A
- Case key
- 52164
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 failure of the pilot to maintain airspeed during the approach resulting in a hard landing. A contributing factor in the accident was the loss of engine power during final approach due to undetermined reasons.
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 performed a power-off approach to the 10th fairway but just before touchdown he elected to fly closer to the club house and pitched the nose up then added power but the engine did not respond. A high sink rate developed resulting in a hard landing. The gyrocopter then began to wobble resulting in main rotor blade contact with the grass fairway. The gyrocopter then rolled over and a postcrash fire damaged one of the main rotor blades, the main rotor pitch change assembly, and the carburetor. He further stated that there was no flight control preimpact failure or malfunction and he believes the engine quit during the approach due to "flooding", as it had happened before. He also stated that he should have added power before pitching up to air taxi.
Factual narrative
On April 21, 2001, about 1900 central daylight time, a Bensen gyrocopter, N218DH, registered to a private individual, landed hard, bounced then rolled over after touchdown on a golf fairway at the Troy County Club, Troy, Alabama. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. The gyrocopter was substantially damaged and the airline transport-rated pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The flight originated about 10 minutes earlier from the Brundidge Municipal Airport, Brundidge, Alabama.
The pilot stated that he performed a power-off approach to the 10th fairway, but just before touchdown he elected to fly closer to the club house and pitched the nose up then added power, but the engine did not respond. A high sink rate developed resulting in a hard landing. The gyrocopter then began to wobble, resulting in main rotor blade contact with the grass fairway. The gyrocopter then rolled over and a postcrash fire damaged one of the main rotor blades, the main rotor pitch change assembly, and the carburetor. He further stated that there was no flight control preimpact failure or malfunction and he believes the engine quit during the approach due to "flooding", as it had happened before. He also stated that he should have added power before pitching up to air taxi.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N218DH
- Reported as
- David G. Holmes Bensen Gyrocopter
- Category
- Gyroplane, amateur-built
- Engine
- Subaru EA-81, 75 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- David G. Holmes
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed
- 60A · Brundidge, AL
- Destination
- Troy, AL
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
- 62
- Injuries
- None
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Single
- Flight hours
- 5,000 total · 250 in this make and model · 3,000 as pilot in command · 90 in the last 90 days · 30 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.31 inHg
- Observed at
- KTOI, 5 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.