Amateur-built AIR COMMAND accident near Centre Hall, Pennsylvania, January 27, 1999
On January 27, 1999 at about 10:20 pm local time, a amateur-built AIR COMMAND (gyroplane), registered N52910, was substantially damaged in an accident near Centre Hall, Pennsylvania (Centre Hall Airpark airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a power line. A factor was the sunglare.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 27, 1999 · about 10:20 pm local time
- Place
- Centre Hall, Pennsylvania · Centre Hall Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built AIR COMMAND AIR COMMAN
- Registration
- N52910 · no longer on the register · serial RIG1
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The gyroplane took off and flew around a witness's house. It then headed toward the northwest, and collided with a nearby power line. The pilot stated that the last thing he remembered was being blinded by the sun.
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: 940 hours in all; 13 in the last 90 days; 940 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 320 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 17, 1998; 14 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 700 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 503 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: N16 at 9:25 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 3,100 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 50°F (10°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.
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.