Rotorway Aircraft, INC. SCORPION TOO accident near Niles, Ohio, July 21, 1982
On July 21, 1982 at about 2:30 pm local time, a Rotorway Aircraft, INC. SCORPION TOO (helicopter), an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N9239Z, was destroyed in an accident near Niles, Ohio. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 21, 1982 · about 2:30 pm local time
- Place
- Niles, Ohio · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Rotorway Aircraft, INC. SCORPION TOO SCORPION T, amateur-built
- Registration
- N9239Z · no longer on the register · serial 7585
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT'S WIFE STATED THAT THE HELICOPTER WAS TAKEN ACROSS THE STREET TO AN OPEN FIELD WHERE THE PLT CONDUCTED HIS FLT IN THE ACFT. SHE HAD NEVER SEEN HIM FLY THIS ACFT OVER ABOUT 3 FT AGL. THE HELICOPTER WAS OBSERVED TO JUMP AS IF LIFTED BY A GUST OF WIND & VEERED OVER THE BUSHES & SMALL TREES. THE ACFT WAS THEN OBSERVED TO CLIMB & TURN TO THE LEFT AT THE SAME TIME. WHEN IT WAS ABOUT 50 FT HIGH THE HELICOPTER THEN CAME STRAIGHT DOWN.
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: rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 43 hours in all; 11 in this make and model; 8 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (invalid medical for flight)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,150 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Outboard 135 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Niles OH at 1:25 am
- Destination: Niles OH
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 090° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 25 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.