I didn't code anything with c_rotate yet.
Sounds as if the axes of the rotating entity don't rotate with the entity.
I would create a debug panel where I can see the resulting values of the entity's pan, tilt, roll, to get an idea how they actually behave.

http://www.puppenheim.org/
http://www.wuerfels-welt.de
Old Game Tutorial: http://www.puppenheim.org/MITutorial.zip
Free Game Editor: http://puppenheim.org/AlienalsWeihnachtsmann.zip
http://www.puppenheim.org/blender_starting_main_settings.txt