Amateur-built B8M accident near Somerville, Tennessee, July 9, 1983
On July 9, 1983 at about 6:30 pm local time, a amateur-built B8M (gyroplane), registered N47BH, was destroyed in an accident near Somerville, Tennessee (Fayette County airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 9, 1983 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Somerville, Tennessee · Fayette County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built B8M · all B8Ms on the register
- Registration
- N47BH · no longer on the register · serial B001
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT CRASHED DURING TAKEOFF WHILE ON A PLEASURE FLIGHT. A WITNESS STATED THAT HE SAW THE ACFT TAKE OFF AND CLIMB OUTAT A GRADUAL CLIMB TO ABOUT 100 FT AND THEN START A GRADUAL DESCENT TO ABOUT 30 FT. AT WHICH TIME THE ACFT NOSED OVER AND WENT ALMOST VERTICALLY INTO THE GROUND. THE CARBURETOR AIR FILTER CAME OFF AND STRUCK THE PROP CAUSING SEVERE VIBRATION. THE PROP THEN STRUCK THE PILOT AND THE ACFT PLUMMETED TO THE GROUND.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 2 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 100 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 4, 1982; 100 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Mcculloch 1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 18
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 93°F (34°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.