Concerned about the accident rate of gyroplanes, helicopter-like craft such as the one that crashed New Year’s Day killing a Joliet man, a national aviation recreation group has called for specialized training and licensing of their pilots.
In a September report, the national Popular Rotorcraft Association, an umbrella group of 4,000 gyroplane enthusiasts, addressed what it called the “continuing poor gyroplane accident record” in the United States.
The report, being reviewed by the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration, blames the vehicles’ aerodynamics and pilot training as the main causes of 44 crashes and 17 deaths between January 1999 and August 2002.
There likely have been more accidents and deaths that have gone unrecorded, according to the Indiana-based recreation organization.
“This investigation was of accidents we know of,” said Gary Goldsberry, the group’s president. “Ultralights aren’t considered aircraft by the FAA, so those [crashes] can happen and we don’t even know about them.”
A gyroplane resembles a helicopter in that it has a large rotor, or propeller, on top, but it is mechanically less complicated and cannot hover like a helicopter.
Depending on its size, the aircraft may be classified as an experimental vehicle regulated by the FAA. If it is classified as an “ultralight,” it must weigh no more than 254 pounds, fly no faster than 63 miles per hour, carry no more than five gallons of fuel and seat no more than one person, according to FAA regulations.
A pilot does not need a license to fly an ultralight aircraft, and that, according to the Popular Rotorcraft Association, is a problem.
“[Licensing] would put all of them in a better classification, and they would all be required to get training,” said Goldsberry. “Then, if you get proper training, you handle the aerodynamic issues.”
The FAA said Thursday it is reviewing the group’s report along with 2,000 comments on the issue.
The debate comes a day after James Gear died in a crash at Lansing Municipal Airport, where some 30 members of the Greater Midwest Rotorcraft Club had gathered for an annual party. Authorities estimated Gear was 150 to 200 feet above the ground before the one-person craft started spinning and then crashed.
Because there was no registration number on Gear’s aircraft, aviation officials do not know what kind of gyroplane the 42-year-old father was flying. Family members said he bought the aircraft already assembled; many owners put them together themselves, using kits from manufacturers.
Investigators will spend Friday examining the remains of Gear’s aircraft, which is being stored in a hangar at the airport.
Gear did not have a gyroplane license, sources said, but he had gyroplane training and was an experienced small-plane pilot who had grown up around airplanes.
“Those type of vehicles can be dangerous,” said Gear’s brother, Kevin. “There are certain conditions they should be flown in, and I think [Wednesday] was a little bit windy.”
The National Weather Service reported wind gusts of about 20 miles an hour in the Chicago area Wednesday.
Kevin Gear, who was working with his brother to open a business related to construction, said he believes his older sibling was drawn to gyroplanes because of the excitement and thrill of being out in the open.
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Michelle Gear-Kleikamp of Plainfield added that her brother was doing something he loved.
“I’m sure that Jimmy never thought, all the way down, that he couldn’t pull the plane out,” Gear-Kleikamp said. “It’s the attitude he had about everything.”
Officials with the aviation recreation group say such aircraft are safe with the proper training. But pilots say that even with some training, weather conditions and mechanical problems can cause mishaps.
“It’s like any other piece of motorized equipment, whether it’s a boat or recreational vehicle,” said Dick Knapinski of the Experimental Aircraft Association based in Oshkosh, Wis. “People should certainly have a very good background about what they’re getting into.”