Amateur-built RAF 2000 GTX SE accident near Muskegon, Michigan, October 4, 2000
On October 4, 2000 at about 10:45 pm local time, a amateur-built RAF 2000 GTX SE (gyroplane), registered N1187Z, was destroyed in an accident near Muskegon, Michigan. 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 main rotor contacting with the vertical stabilizer, the loss of the vertical stabilizer, and the aircraft control not possible by the pilot.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 4, 2000 · about 10:45 pm local time
- Place
- Muskegon, Michigan · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built RAF 2000 GTX SE RAF 2000 G
- Registration
- N1187Z · no longer on the register · serial 2
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The amateur-built gyroplane was destroyed on impact with terrain and a post crash fire while en route to land on the pilot/builder's private airstrip. An on-scene examination of the wreckage was performed. The vertical stabilizer of the aircraft was found about 1 mile from the main wreckage site. There was evidence of a main rotor strike to the vertical stabilizer. The pre-rotator drive belts for the rotor system were found about 300 feet from the main wreckage. A post-impact fire extensively damaged the main wreckage. No anomalies could be found that could be associated with a preexisting condition.
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: private
- Ratings: rotorcraft: gyroplane
- Flight time: 25 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,540 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Subaru UNKNOWN (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: MKG at 10:28 pm
- Destination: PVT MI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 129°F (54°C), dew point 106°F (41°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:45 pm from MKG, 9 miles away
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.