Airgyro AG915 accident near Yankton, SD
On September 27, 2022, an Airgyro AG915 (gyroplane) was involved in an accident near Yankton, SD. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- September 27, 2022
- Place
- Yankton, SD
- Aircraft
- Airgyro AG915 · Gyroplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 42.947°N, 97.436°W
- NTSB ID
- 20220927106005
Official records · CEN22FA433
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn September 27, 2022, about 1015 central daylight time, an Airgyro AG915 Spartan gyroplane, N499AG, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Yankton, South Dakota. The pilot sustained fatal injuries. The gyroplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 flight test. According to the pilot’s family members, the purpose of the local area flight was to build flight time and to obtain 40 flight hours on the experimental gyroplane. The gyroplane was based out of a hangar at the Chan Gurney Municipal Airport (YKN), Yankton, South Dakota. The gyroplane departed from runway 31 at YKN and traveled to the west for the flight. One witness observed the gyroplane, about 400 ft above ground level (agl), with “heavy black smoke” emitting from the gyroplane. The gyroplane appeared to be flying to the west, but then made a “quick” turn toward the south; it went “straight down, nose first,” and impacted the ground. The witness did not see any fire emitting from the gyroplane while it was it was flying. A second witness observed the gyroplane flying to the west, about 350 ft agl. He observed “a lot of black smoke” emitting from the gyroplane, but he did not see any fire emitting from the gyroplane while it was flying. The witness observed the gyroplane turn toward the south and the gyroplane then went “straight down, nose first” into the ground. The gyroplane impacted a flat grass field on private property. The accident site was located about 2.3 nm northwest from the departure end of runway 31 at YKN. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONAccording to th
Probable cause
A loss of control while an in-flight fire occurred, which resulted in an impact with terrain. Contributing to the accident was the pilot/builder’s improper engine build procedures.
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Browse: South Dakota
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
