Amateur-built MINI 500 accident near Gettysburg, Ohio, December 19, 1997
On December 19, 1997 at about 7:50 pm local time, a amateur-built MINI 500 (helicopter), registered N727EB, was destroyed in an accident near Gettysburg, Ohio. 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 engine power for undetermined reasons, followed by the main rotor striking the tailboom, which resulted in the separation of a main rotor blade.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 19, 1997 · about 7:50 pm local time
- Place
- Gettysburg, Ohio · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built MINI 500
- Registration
- N727EB · no longer on the register · serial 001
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The homebuilt Mini 500 helicopter was in level flight about 900 to 1200 feet, when the engine sounds stopped. The helicopter's nose dropped, and one main rotor blade struck the tailboom and separated from the rotor head. The helicopter descended and struck the ground 90 degrees nose down. Examination of the non-certificated 2 cycle Rotax engine did not reveal a reason for the power loss. The engine manufacturer published the maximum continuous RPM as 6,500. Other builders reported that when the helicopter's rotor RPM was operated at the top of the green arc, the engine operated about 6,700 RPM. The NTSB database revealed 23 Mini-500 accidents in 1997 and 1998. Twelve of those involved a loss of engine power. The Rotax operator's manual stated, '...This engine by design is subject to sudden stoppage...Never fly the aircraft equipped with this engine at locations, airspeeds, altitudes...from which a successful no-power landing cannot be made...'
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: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot, flight engineer, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 10,000 hours in all; 12 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 12 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, November 17, 1997; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 840 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 582 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3I7 Phillipsburg OH at 7:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:51 pm from DAY, 11 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.