Cirrus crash in Australia

I believe I heard the news report calling it a "Cessna".. I like their thorough grasp on what they say.

Also they made it sound like a dramatic plunge.. whereas what I saw looked like a gentle controlled descent as intended by the maker.

 

Cirrus own plane, n registered.

 

I wonder if they made the sale?

 

The customer walked...

 

CAPS working perfectly

 

Walked? or err parachuted

 

That does look compelling (as a lifesaving system).

 

I certainly wouldn't call that a "crash". It really does look like the parachute did its job perfectly.

 

Yes, all three occupants walked away safely.

 

Correct. This particular plane is a demonstrator in Oz. Pure and unadulterated speculation but the word is that the plane was being stalled by a prospective buyer and entered a spin when the maneuver was not done correctly. The demo pilot apparently pulled the chute.

 

Is a spin in that airplane a non-recoverable event? Couldn't the instructor pilot taken over?

 

Couple of thoughts: first we don't know if it indeed was a spin; second we don't know at what altitude it happened; third, we're not sure if the other pilot was a CFI or just a demo pilot (I guess the latter); fourth we are not sure if anyone onboard had spin training; and finally, the record for CAPS (parachute) deployment in the Cirrus done within the correct parameters is so good that they definitely did the right thing IMHO.

 

Thanks, many variables. If the prospective pilot was doing stalls he should have had the altitude to affect a spin recovery. Eye witness said that the airplane started a spiral after it stalled. Never mind, they got out safely.

 

Where they were is nothing but trees, houses, roads, rugged valleys.. no decent place to put down for miles.. if they couldn't continue to fly then popping the chute definitely a great option for all concerned in the plane and on the ground.

 

Is a Cirrus typically just 'salvage' after a chute event?... or is it restorable to flying condition... or does it depend on the 'landing'?

 

I'm sure the landing is a factor but I can tell you that there are Cirri (pl??) that are airworthy and flying again after chute deployment. There are others that are not.

 

It appears to me that this one with the aft fuselage snapped off, horizontal tail bent up, and severe wing damage, plus other things that obviously would damage the underside, that it is a write-off.

 

Don't know about "non-recoverable" but I believe the cirrus is not certified for spin training. I know we have a couple of Cirrus owners on the board, sure they can confirm.

 

Here's the details - most get written off.

https://www.cirruspilots.org/copa/safety_programs/w/safety_pages/723.cirrus-caps-history.aspx

Of the 9 they list that were repaired and flew again, two were written off later in more serious crashes that didn't experience CAPS deployments.

>8^)
ER

 

So much for premature speculation - the engine failed in cruise. Well, at least read the below from the Australian Government's Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) before you speculate:

The ATSB has commenced an investigation into an engine failure and subsequent forced landing involving a Cirrus SR22, N802DK, 74 km WNW of Sydney Airport, New South Wales, on 10 May 2014.

During the cruise, the engine failed and the pilot deployed the aircraft’s ballistic parachute recovery system. The aircraft was substantially damaged during the forced landing.

As part of the investigation, the ATSB will interview the pilot and gather additional information.

A report will be released within several months.