June 04, Tampa, Fla. / Cessna 172

At about 0822 eastern time, a Cessna 172S crashed near Lutz, killing the pilot. The pilot had crashed his experimental Rotorway 162F helicopter into the roof of a Tampa house at 2130 eastern time the night before, and it was discovered that the helicopter carried the wrong N-number. In the airplane crash, the pilot departed Vandenberg Airport at 0709 and orbited for about 15 minutes at 2,100 feet. The airplane then moved slightly west and orbited a roadway intersection for nearly an hour. Attempts to communicate with the airplane by the Tampa Tower and a Sheriff helicopter on several frequencies were unsuccessful. A witness reported hearing the engine rev up before the airplane pitched down and crashed at an 80-degree nose-low attitude.