Taylor BANDIT accident near Marysville, California, April 28, 2001
On April 28, 2001 at about 8:41 pm local time, a Taylor BANDIT (gyroplane), an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N8057T, was destroyed in an accident near Marysville, California (Yuba County airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot performed an inadequate preflight inspection resulting in a loss of engine power at a low altitude because of water contamination.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 28, 2001 · about 8:41 pm local time
- Place
- Marysville, California · Yuba County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Taylor BANDIT, amateur-built
- Registration
- N8057T · registry record · serial 108
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The experimental gyrocopter dropped back to the runway and caught fire following a loss of engine power during takeoff. The gyrocopter made a nose high takeoff. About 50 to 100 feet in the air, the engine sputtered and the gyrocopter fell straight back down to the runway. It burst into flames, and the pilot extricated himself from the wreckage. He fled the runway, on his own power with his clothes on fire, to a truck where medical personnel provided treatment. The gyrocopter had tapered fuel tanks that narrowed at the bottom. Fuel lines at the bottom of the tank went from the leading and trailing edge of the tank to the engine. The pilot used two plastic gas cans to fuel the gyrocopter. About 1/2 gallon of fuel remained in each can, and investigators discovered water in each can. The gas had been in the fuel cans when the pilot arrived at the airport. A third can that was full of fuel also had water in it.
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
- Flight time: 186 hours in all; 186 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 186 hours
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Subaru (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: MYV Marysville CA at 8:41 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.02 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from MYV
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.