Says Mods To Xenon RST Gyroplane Caused Vapor Lock

A man from Albuquerque, New Mexico who crashed a two-seat gyroplane in August has filed a claim in the bankruptcy case of a former owner of the aircraft, claiming a modification made to the aircraft caused his accident. But according to a report in the Denver Post, court records show he's seeking not only the full purchase price of the wrecked aircraft, but the costs he paid for meals, lodging and fuel he bought learning how to fly it in Las Vegas earlier last year.

James Cooper filed the claim in mid-December. He bought the Celier Aviation Xenon RST (similar aircraft pictured) from New Course Aviation in Golden, CO. But his claim is against Tom Martino, a Denver talk show host and consumer advocate, who was the previous owner. Cooper claims modifications made by Martino led to vapor lock and an engine failure in-flight, and that Martino never disclosed the modifications which caused the problem.

Martino tells the paper that modifications he made were disclosed in writing and approved by inspectors, but adds that none of them are the mods that Cooper claims were at issue. He adds Cooper had engine problems before the accident, and had fueled the Xenon with gasoline containing ethanol in violation of manufacturer instructions. He says Cooper "heard I have a bankruptcy and that I have millions of dollars so he's lining up. He's a student with no skill and crashed an airplane. He's an idiot."

The Celier Xenon is a fully-enclosed, two-place gyroplane built in Poland. The FAA is still stalling on allowing factory-built gyros to be registered as S-LSA or E-LSA in the US, but about ten factory-built Xenons were imported before January 31, 2008, during the LSA phase-in which allowed "fat ultralights" to be transitioned to E-LSA certificates. The machines can be flown by Sport Pilots with Gyroplane privileges.

The FAA database lists Cooper as a Sport Pilot in weight-shift aircraft, but not in gyroplanes. He was not injured in the wreck, and tells the paper he has a salvage offer for what's left of the aircraft. The Post reports Martino's lawyers say Cooper is trying to get rid of the evidence to prevent a proper investigation of the cause of the accident.

The Xenon RST model uses an 80-HP Rotax 912 boosted to 135 HP using a Mitsubishi turbocharger. At least one other Xenon RST owner has reported an engine-out caused by vapor lock when using auto fuel which was found to contain ethanol.

FMI: www.celieraviation.eu/view/131-xenon-2-rst.html