Amateur-built HOMEBUILT GYROCOPTER accident near Adelanto, California, May 25, 1992
On May 25, 1992 at about 2:00 am local time, a amateur-built HOMEBUILT GYROCOPTER (gyroplane), registered UNREG, was destroyed in an accident near Adelanto, California. 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
A LOSS OF CONTROL FOR UNDETERMINED REASONS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 25, 1992 · about 2:00 am local time
- Place
- Adelanto, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built HOMEBUILT GYROCOPTER HOMEBUILT
- Registration
- UNREG · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE HOMEBUILT GYROCOPTER WAS OBSERVED BY TO ENTER A STEEP LOW LEVEL TURN OVER THE EL MIRAGE DRY LAKE AFTER MEETING AN APPROACHING MOTOR VEHICLE. THE WITNESS STATED THAT THE GYROCOPTER NOSED INTO THE DRY LAKE BED WHILE IN THE TURN. THE PILOT HAD BUILT THE GYROCOPTER FROM SALVAGE PARTS. HE HAD BEEN FLYING GYROCOPTERS SINCE HE WAS 15 YEARS OLD. HE HAD NOT RECEIVED FORMAL FLIGHT TRAINING IN THE AIRCRAFT. THE PILOT'S TOXICOLOGICAL EXAMINATION SHOWED 5.12 MG/L METHAMPHETAMINE AND 0.47 MG/L AMPHETAMINE IN THE HEART BLOOD.
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
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, January 2, 2000
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
Other NTSB records under UNREG the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.