Cirrus SR-22 N847C

Summary

On 4 April 2011 at about 15:58 local time, a Cirrus SR-22 registered N847C, operated by Windy City Flyers, was involved in an accident near South Bend, Indiana, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

4 April 2011 at 15:58

Classification

Accident

Location

South Bend, Indiana, United States

Nearest airport

South Bend Regional Airport (SBN)

Coordinates

41.7081, -86.3172

Aircraft

Cirrus SR-22

Registration

N847C

Category

Airplane

Year built

2008

Engines

1

Operator

Windy City Flyers

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wheeling → South Bend

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN11FA267

1 person died.

The pilot’s failure to maintain airplane control while on final approach with a gusting crosswind and the subsequent aerodynamic stall and spin during the attempted go-around.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was performing a landing approach with a known, gusting crosswind present. A witness stated that the airplane was being “bounced around” by the wind gusts and that it “stalled and rolled to the left.” Another witness heard the accident airplane go to full power. The airplane was then in a 15- to 30-degree left bank with a nose-down attitude before it impacted the ground. The airplane’s left wing impacted the ground first, then the airplane cartwheeled one-half turn. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no preimpact airframe or engine anomalies that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane. About 8 months before the accident, the airplane's annual inspection was completed, and 2 days later the airplane's recoverable data module (RDM) stopped recording data due to a failed transient voltage suppressor (TVS) and did not record data during the accident flight. The airplane underwent a 100-hour inspection about midway through the 8 month period, and the failed RDM was not detected at that time. The system does not provide a failure indication to the pilot, and there is no requirement during the 100-hour inspection to check the RDM. A likely cause of the TVS failure could have been electrical overstress: the airplane was tied down overnight, and lightning was present when the RDM stopped recording. A similar airplane sustained substantial lightning strike airframe and avionics damage while tied down and at least two other airplanes sustained lightning strikes at that time. An Air Force Research Lab report recommended that a “review of the system design be conducted to determine if a cockpit indicator could be installed to alert the pilot when data logging is not functioning."

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.