Amateur-built BM8 accident near Zilwauker, Michigan, September 9, 1982
On September 9, 1982 at about 5:00 pm local time, a amateur-built BM8 (gyroplane), registered N9463A, was destroyed in an accident near Zilwauker, Michigan (Browne airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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
- September 9, 1982 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Zilwauker, Michigan · Browne
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built BM8
- Registration
- N9463A · no longer on the register · serial 6776
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING FLIGHT AT ABOUT 1500 FT AGL, THE AIRCRAFT ENGINE LOST POWER. THE PILOT MADE A STEEP APPROACH TO LAND IN A SMALL FIELD SURROUNDED BY POWER LINES. HE STATED THAT DURING AN EXTREME FLARE TO STOP THE FORWARD FLIGHT, THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES HIT THE GROUND AND THE ROTOR MAST FAILED. AN EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED THAT THE NO. 1 AND NO. 2 PISTONS WERE DAMAGED BY NEEDLE BEARINGS FROM THE NO. 2 WRIST PIN, MCCULLOCK PN GB138X.
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: commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 243 hours in all; 63 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days; 177 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 63 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 63 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 700 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Mccullock 4318AX (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 11 Zilwauker MI
- Destination: 11 Zilwauker MI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 167°F (75°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.