Manchester By The Sea Pilot In Beverly Airport Plane Crash Dies

BEVERLY, MA — A 66-year-old man whose gyroplane crashed at Beverly Airport on Sunday has died.

The gyroplane crashed following a takeoff incident at about 11:35 a.m. on Sunday morning. The pilot was taken to the hospital with critical injuries, which he did not survive. Essex County District Attorney's Office confirmed his death and identified the pilot as Geoffrey Muller, of Manchester by the Sea.

The airport was closed for several hours on Sunday but reopened later in the day.

The National Transportation Safety Board said on Sunday they were investigating the cause of the crash.

"At the request of the NTSB, the (Beverly Airport) Commission was asked to hold off on any statements pending their arrival and initial review of the scene," Aaron Henry, Danvers Director of Land Use and Community Services, said on Monday in an email to concerned neighbors of Danvers and Beverly near the airport runways. "Both FAA and NTSB personnel were immediately en route, and the (Beverly Mayor Mike Cahill) and (the Airport Commission) Chair were regularly apprised of the situation throughout the afternoon (Sunday)."

A gyroplane is an aircraft that uses autorating blades that are not connected to an engine while in flight, according to SilverLight Aviation.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)