Amateur-built ROTORWAY EXEC accident near Lakeport, California, July 18, 1997
On July 18, 1997 at about 4:30 pm local time, a amateur-built ROTORWAY EXEC (helicopter), registered N6323F, was destroyed in an accident near Lakeport, California (Lampson Field). 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
an undetermined failure of the oil system (lines or filter), while hovering, which resulted in an engine compartment fire that erupted and subsequently destroyed the helicopter after it was landed.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 18, 1997 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Lakeport, California · Lampson Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built ROTORWAY EXEC ROTORWAY E
- Registration
- N6323F · no longer on the register · serial 3237
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot said he was practicing hover operations, when the oil pressure began to decrease. By the time he had landed at his parking ramp, the oil pressure was at zero. As he exited the helicopter, the pilot noticed smoke and flames coming from the right side of the engine compartment. He was unsuccessful in extinguishing the fire with a portable fire extinguisher, and the helicopter was destroyed in the subsequent ground fire. The pilot had completed a condition inspection of the experimental helicopter immediately before the flight.
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: single-engine land
- Flight time: 225 hours in all; 150 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 150 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 18, 1997; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,350 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotorway RW152 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 102 at 4:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:45 pm from UKI, 35 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.