Amateur-built DRAGONFLY accident near Anahuac, Texas, November 16, 2013
On November 16, 2013 at about 7:15 pm local time, a 2009 amateur-built DRAGONFLY (gyroplane), registered N975DF, was destroyed in an accident during maneuvering near Anahuac, Texas (Chambers 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 incorrect installation by the pilot, who was not a certificated mechanic or repairman, of the main rotor head bearing block, which resulted in the in-flight separation of the rotor head.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 16, 2013 · about 7:15 pm local time
- Place
- Anahuac, Texas · Chambers County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DRAGONFLY NO SERIES, built 2009
- Registration
- N975DF · no longer on the register · serial 001
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The gyroplane was in the airport traffic pattern when witnesses saw the main rotor head separate in flight and the gyroplane subsequently impact terrain. The pilot's friends and the mechanic who performed the last conditional inspection reported that the pilot/owner performed most of the maintenance on the gyroplane and that he had recently installed the main rotor head bearing block. Examination of the wreckage revealed that the bearing block had been installed upside down and was being held in place solely by friction. The pilot was not a Federal Aviation Administration-certificated mechanic or repairman.
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
What happened, in order
- Aircraft structural failure during maneuvering defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during uncontrolled descent
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft propeller/rotor › Main rotor system › Main rotor head system › Incorrect service/maintenance
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Maintenance › Installation › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; rotorcraft: gyroplane
- Flight time: 835 hours in all; 738 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days
- Last flight review: March 5, 2012
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Last inspection: condition inspection, August 17, 2013
- Maximum gross weight: 637 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Ama/Expr UNKNOWN ENG (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: T00 Anahuac TX at 7:00 pm
- Destination: T00 Anahuac TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 30, 3,005 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 170° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,400 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 75°F (24°C)
- Altimeter: 29.88 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from KEFD, 31 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.