AAIB report on M24 door open accident;

[EI-GYRO]

This report relates to the UK accident, not the SA one;

http://www.aaib.gov.uk/cms_resources.cfm?file=/Magni%20gyroplane%20M24C%20Orion,%20G-CGTI%2010-11.pdf

[GyroDoug]

Very interesting Read. It sounds like even though he was warned over the radio to concentrate of flying the Gyro, he allowed the open door to take too big a chunk of his attention and it simply got away from him. I suppose we can all learn from this accident even if we don't have doors to worry about opening in flight.

[Gyro_Kai]

Also it is surprising that he flew at such a high speed (99mph). I would not go beyond 50 mph and maybe up to 60 on final in such a case. But as it seems, the door stayed on and did not detach during flight.

Kai.

[Illini85]

Also it is surprising that he flew at such a high speed (99mph). I would not go beyond 50 mph and maybe up to 60 on final in such a case.

Kai.

It would kind of suggest that he felt an urgency to return and I guess that is the first issue to manage.

[Scary Gary]

I don't remember which flight istructure drilled this into me " no matter what happens KEEP FLYING THE PLANE " but that mantra has kept me focused on the task at hand which was flying the F@#$ing plane . I had the door pop open on a V-35 once just as I had got the plane in the air . My first thought was " you need to get that door closed "
And as I was reaching for the door I thought " KEEP FLYING THE PLANE " . So I kept my gear down and flew the pattern and landed safely and got the door good and closed on the ground and then continued my flight .

[PTKay]

I don't remember which flight istructure drilled this into me " no matter what happens KEEP FLYING THE PLANE " but that mantra has kept me focused on the task at hand which was flying the F@#$ing plane .

Gary. Amen to that.

[EI-GYRO]

If he was flying one-handed, it might account for leaving the throttle where it
was until he needed to throttle back for the approach, which is where it all
went wrong.

This gull-wing door arrangement caused problems for the Xenon, happily not
fatal ones, but has so far resulted in three fatalities with the M24.

Strangely, the manufacturer seems to suggest that they have not tested the flight characteristics with a door open, but also seem to assert that the flight characteristics are unaffected by an open door. ????

Put the hinges where they belong.

[PTKay]

Put the hinges where they belong.

This was the decision made for Xenon GIII.

This should solve the problem once and forever.

[Learjet]

The UK AAIB is to be commended for a very thorough accident report.

IMHO there are 4 critical contributing factors which are identified:

1. Pilot's lack of experience in the M24 - just 2:35 hours as PIC.

2. Failure to properly secure and check the door latches prior to flight.

3. The pilot was in a desperate hurry to get the gyro on the ground and lost focus what should have been his priority - that of flying the gyro (aviate, navigate, communicate). Ultimately he stopped FLYING the aircraft.

The M24 WILL fly quite satisfactorily with the door open as demonstrated by instructors and students on advanced flying courses in South Africa. (rudder yaw will actually close it.) The South African accident report has yet to be released but by all accounts has all the similar hallmarks, door opening in flight with the pilot striking power lines whilst attempting a hurried emergency landing on a road not far from a perfectly good runway.

4. The current door / locking / latch design on the M24 is simply not safe enough.

Whilst it's easy to point the blame at the pilot for failing to ensure that the door(s) were securely latched - the reality is that the current set-up is not "pilot friendly", is accordingly prone to oversight and therefor not safe. Period.

I'm not at all convinced that Magni's response to the AAIB will adequately address the problem. A warning light will NOT suffice. Ask the many Magni pilots who have taken off with the rotor brake still applied... despite the red warning light on the instrument panel (myself included!). As PTKay & EI-GYRO have both pointed out, Xenon abandoned the gull-wing door design for good reason. Magni must now do so too.

[rfsolutions]

The ASTM standard requires doors to remained closed if the latching mechanism fails. teh RAF, Sparrowhawk and Sport Copter I fly all have doors that remained closed if unlatched for good reason.

[Vance]

The ASTM standard requires doors to remained closed if the latching mechanism fails. teh RAF, Sparrowhawk and Sport Copter I fly all have doors that remained closed if unlatched for good reason.

Hello Marv,

What gyroplanes are built to the ASTM standards?

Thank you, Vance