Air & Space GYROPLANE 18A accident near Harwich, Massachusetts, August 13, 1984
On August 13, 1984 at about 10:50 pm local time, a Air & Space GYROPLANE 18A, registered N6129S, was substantially damaged in an accident near Harwich, Massachusetts. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. 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
- August 13, 1984 · about 10:50 pm local time
- Place
- Harwich, Massachusetts
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air & Space GYROPLANE 18A GYROPLANE
- Registration
- N6129S · no longer on the register · serial 18-35
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
CRUISING AT 500 FT OVER WATER THE PLT ENCOUNTERED FOG. IN AN EFFORT TO MAINTAIN VISUAL CONTACT WITH THE SHORELINE THE PLT BEGAN A DESCENT AND BEGAN A TURN TO AVOID THE FOG. DURING THE DESCENDING TURN THE ACFT GOT LOW AND SLOW AND THE PLT WAS UNABLE TO CONTROL THE DESCENT. DESPITE FULL POWER THE ACFT FLEW INTO THE SHALLOW WATER.
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; rotorcraft: gyroplane
- Flight time: 325 hours in all; 206 in this make and model; 42 in the last 90 days; 33 in the last 30 days; 254 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 17, 1984; 42 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: WST Westerly RI at 9:50 pm
- Destination: 0B6 Chatham MA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded at 1,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
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.