Gyro down

gyroplanes

FAA DAR Gyropilot
Joined
Mar 18, 2004
Messages
6,205
Location
Lansing, Illinois (Chicago South Suburb)
Aircraft
(1) Air Command, (1) Bensen glider project (1) Air Command 2 place kit, (1) Sycamore gyro
Total Flight Time
2650
20-JUN-15 16:30:00Z
CONCORD NEW HAMPSHIRE N485MP, EXPERIMENTAL HOMEBUILT ROTORCRAFT, ON LANDING SUSTAINED UNKNOWN DAMAGE, CONCORD, NH.

I hope you are "OK" Mike
 
Yes that was me. I did not receive even a scratch. The machine is another story. Working late tonight but will provide full details when able thanks for your concern.
Mike
 
Glad to read you are ok Mike!

Glad to read you are ok Mike!

Sad about the aircraft.

I look forward to your report.

I feel there is always something to learn.
 
I saw this on the FAA Preliminary but was baffled by the model type "A".
 
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Yes that was me. I did not receive even a scratch. The machine is another story. Working late tonight but will provide full details when able thanks for your concern.
Mike

Oh No, not Anisoptera!

I'm glad you're ok Mike, I hate to see this especially given what happened to Dragonfly.

.
 
now allocated a NTSB Ref #

NTSB Identification: GAA15CA127
Accident occurred Saturday, June 20, 2015 in Concord, NH
Aircraft: PAQUIN MICHAEL A A, registration: N485MP
 
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Damn, Mike, we'd hoped to see you at Yankee Ultralight in Greenland, NH, the end of next week. Sorry for your misfortune.
 
An error of omission

An error of omission

And now, the rest of the story:

On June 20th, my friend and I decided to take a short cross-country flight to a nearby airport for a "$100 hamburger" at a nearby restaurant. We checked the weather, fueled up the machines, conducted our preflight inspections. It was about 12:30pm and the skies where clear and generally a nice day to fly. I have a small engine go-ped type pre-rotator on my gyro and I moved my gyro to a clear spot to start and warmed up the goped engine so it would easier to start back up when I reach the runway. I usually have to leave a small amount of manual choke on the pre-rotator, and that day was no exception.

I taxied down to the end of runway 12 (the wind was from 140 varying to 180 at 5-7mph) and made a radio announcement that we would be a flight of 2 gyros departing One Two and heading to the north. I proceeded to the runway and lined up on the center when I noticed my Microtim electronic altimeter had powered off into the power saving sleep mode. I have a 4 point seltbelt and I must remove it to reach the altimeter to reactivate it. (This was to be the primary distraction). I refastened the seatbelt and did the F-I-T pre-takeoff checklist (Fuel, Instruments,Traffic).

I changed my pre rotator brake last September from the Wunderlich style to a caliper/disc brake style because I was not able to engage the Wunderlich type very well because of the cyclic/ rotor head control rod geometry bottomed out on the stops before it could apply the rotor brake very well. I had a friction control for the new rotor brake that would allow me to keep the brake applied hands free. I had about 10 to 15 flights with the new pre rotator.

I started the pre-rotator and began the rotor spin up. I usually spin up to 180 rrpm before I release the pre-rotator and begin the take-off roll. That day I could only reach 150 rrpm which I incorrectly attributed to leaving on too much choke on the pre-rotator, decreasing it’s power output. I began the take-off roll with about 1/2 throttle as usual and felt the wind pressure on my body varying from the changing wind. I had traveled approximately 200 to 300 feet down the runway when I felt an unusual vibration that felt like a front wheel shimmy. (During the early days, when I practiced taxiing without the rotor, my front wheel developed a severe shimmy that left a strong impression on me! I have since changed the front wheel assembly and included a dampening device.) I looked down at the front wheel to see if my wheel developed a new shimmy. All the while, the rotor was not accelerating normally. Then, I felt the rotor hit its stops at the rotor head four times in less than 1 second and the gyro rolled.

The next thing I knew, I was lying on my side strapped in the seat and heard an engine running. I immediately pressed the main engine kill switches but still heard an engine. I realized that the goped pre rotator was still running and shut that down too. I then released the seat belt and walked away.
I didn’t receive any cuts or bruises. My hands never touched the ground during the roll. Even the helmet didn’t have a scratch. My lower back was a little sore but nothing else. I knew I was very lucky but the site of my gyro was very depressing. That machine deserved better from it’s pilot.

OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATION:

I did not update my take-off checklist to include RELEASE ROTOR BRAKE.

I did not stop my takeoff roll immediately to investigate why I couldn’t pre rotate to my normal 180rrpm.

I did not reduce the throttle and level the rotor at the FIRST SIGN OF VIBRATION. ( I was trying to diagnose the problem by looking at the front wheel for shimmy).

The wind may have played a role in this event, if the wind was crossed the takeoff acceleration may have happened more quickly and if the wind changed to a headwind, it would have added more air passing through the slowing rotor.

I have over 600 takeoffs and landing in gyroplanes and maybe complacency had settled in.

I would suggest everyone re-read the following post:
http://www.rotaryforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=43417&highlight=russian&page=3
paying particular attention to posts 45,50,52,71,72,73.

I know I’m very lucky. My fellow pilots keep reminding me of this and thats a good thing. I’m slowly learning to forgive myself for damaging that wonderful machine.

Live and learn…….and rebuild.

Mike
 

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I have always heard, There are those that have, and there are those that will.
Welcome to the "have" club.
 
Mike, as one of the "have" group as well (twice for different reasons) I firmly believe your ability to record and retell what your mistakes were are a huge part of being able to look objectively at the situation and move on to being a better pilot.
I never trust the high time pilots who have never had to deal with an accident, you don't know how they will react!
What you SHOULD take away from this is that although you may not have taken the exact proper corrective action for mast bumping, you didnt go "hunh, its never done that before...Oh well" you were activly attempting to solve the situation. Thats important for your psyche. You need to recognize that you didnt just let it happen, you were solving, but because of a previous shimmy you immediately thought to look for that.
After you re build your bird, you may experience a major unspoken hit to your confidence. This can be really difficult to deal with.
Call me if you wish to chat further....like I said,been there done that threw away the t-shirt.
Hope you can get back in the air soon, the down times can really mess with your head. Good luck!
 
After you re build your bird, you may experience a major unspoken hit to your confidence. This can be really difficult to deal with.
Call me if you wish to chat further....like I said,been there done that threw away the t-shirt.
Hope you can get back in the air soon, the down times can really mess with your head. Good luck!

You mean I'm not the only one to feel that way?
Ben's absolutely correct, get back on the horse ASAP!
 
Sad to hear of your accident.

Good analysis, good conclusion. Any doubts during take-off, don’t.
 
Mike, glad you are ok. I hope you can rebuild quickly. I have flown several times with my rotor brake engaged. Thankfully, the rotor brake on my Sport Copter is not strong enough to hinder it too much.
 
I think just about all of us have flown with the rotor brake engaged at one time or

another,and possibly some of us a couple of times.


Best regards,eddie.....
 
The NTSB have now published their Probable Cause as follows,


The pilot of the amateur built gyrocopter reported that during taxi to the runway, he was distracted by his electronic altimeter when it entered a sleep mode. After resetting the altimeter, the pilot immediately entered the active runway and initiated the takeoff roll without disengaging the main rotor brake. Subsequently, at 25 miles per hour during the takeoff roll he reported an unusual vibration and a knocking sound. The pilot attempted to reduce speed, but the gyrocopter tipped forward and to the left, the main rotor impacted the ground, and the gyrocopter rolled over on its right side coming to a stop on the runway.

During an interview with the pilot, he explained that the rotor brake must be disengaged before takeoff. He also stated that this accident may have been prevented if the rotor brake was designed in a manner that required manual hand pressure from the pilot.

The pilot stated there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the gyrocopter that would have precluded normal operation. Substantial damage was found along the main rotor and vertical stabilizer.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:

The pilot's inability to maintain direction control during takeoff, which resulted in a roll over. Contributing to the loss of control was the pilot's failure to disengage the main rotor brake prior to takeoff.
 
The "main rotor brake." Sheesh. At least they noted it had a vertical stabilizer and not a tail rotor.

I wonder, if gyros continue their new growth spurt in the US, if the NTSB will have to recruit someone who has a clue about them to proofread its reports.
 
Thank you all for all the positive words. I really appreciate them!
The rebuild process has begun! Will post about the progress.
Thanks again!
Mike
 
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