Ortmayer/Parson NONE N69EP

Summary

On 12 March 2004 at about 23:30 local time, a Ortmayer/Parson NONE registered N69EP was involved in an accident near Bunnell, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and one died, one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

12 March 2004 at 23:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Bunnell, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Flagler County (X47)

Coordinates

29.4672, -81.2061

Aircraft

Ortmayer/Parson NONE

Registration

N69EP

Category

Gyrocraft

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bunnell → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA04LA058

1 person died.

The owner/pilot mechanic's failure to comply with a manufacture notice to replace the rotor blades and hub bar assembly, resulting in a failure of the hub bar to hub bar wing attaching bolt and separation of a main rotor blade.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

While on an instructional flight, a bolt in the main rotor blade broke separating the blade from the hub. The blade struck the student pilot resulting in fatal injuries. The responding FAA inspector stated the on-scene investigation found the hub bar wing and rotor blade had separated from the hub bar due to the failure of the hub bar wing retaining bolt head. The NTSB material lab reported the bolt that retains the hub bar wing to the hub bar was fractured in the radius between the shank and the head. Presence of fatigue arrest marks covering approximately 90 percent of the cross-sectional area. The fatigue cracks initiated from multiple origins all the way around the outer diameter surface at the bases of the radius with the head. The head contacts that hub bar without the use of a washer. A product notice number 33 was issued by Rotary Air Force (RAF) on June 18, 2001, placing a 500 hour time change factor on RAF rotor blades and hub bar "until further notice". The product notice number 33 had not been accomplished on the accident gyroplane at the time of the accident. The owner/certified flight instructor (CFI) stated the blades had a total time of about 930 hours at the time of the accident, which about 430 of those hours were of airtime. He did remember getting some kind of notice through the mail, something about a 500 hours time on the blades but the notice was not clear and too vague. If it was mandatory, a notice wound be issued stating as such. The Owner/CFI added the blades on the accident gyroplane never experience a ground strike, but did have nicks and scrape marks on the blades. A representative of RAF contacted the owner/CFI about a month after product notice 33 was issued advising of the notice and informed him about internal damage and stress that occurs if the rotor blade contacts the ground and the nature of such damage, which are undetectable. The owner/CFI stated he and RAF have had conversations; however, those discussions were more about training issues and the amount of training time the students were receiving. None of those conversations were about RAF product notice number 33 or blade strikes.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.