Amateur-built Air Command accident near Wilmont, Ohio, December 3, 2004
On December 3, 2004 at about 8:30 pm local time, a amateur-built Air Command (gyroplane), registered UNREG, was substantially damaged in an accident near Wilmont, Ohio. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a wire while maneuvering to land in an open field.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 3, 2004 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Wilmont, Ohio · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Air Command
- Registration
- UNREG · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While maneuvering to land in an open field, an unregistered amateur built gyrocopter, piloted by an uncertificated pilot, contacted a wire and impacted the ground. Witnesses reported no mechanical abnormalities with the gyrocopter prior to it contacting the wire, and examination of the wreckage did not reveal any preimpact failures or malfunctions.
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: Class 3
- Seat: unk
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 2D7 Beach City OH at 8:30 pm
- Destination: Wilmot OH
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,700 ft
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from BJJ, 19 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.