CHI06LA078

The airplane, piloted by an instrument rated private pilot, sustained substantial damage on impact with terrain following an in-flight loss of control during climb in instrument meteorological conditions. The pilot stated, "The flight plan was entered on the GPS [Global Positioning System] direct to function. Took off on runway 26 at about 1320 and a right turning climb was made to the east. When we were heading in the general direction and a climb was established, I place the plane on autopilot. I switched the frequency to 128.0 and immediately heard the frequency buzzing and saw the radio was in the RX mode and would not quit, my first distraction. I contacted Minneapolis center and reported a 3700 ft altitude and climbing, they replied to report back at 7000 or 9000 ft, I don't remember. I then noticed that the autopilot had me in a left hand standard rate turn, even though I was heading east at the time the autopilot was engaged, my next distraction. I then took over the controls to try to get up to the required altitude. In doing so I obviously misread the vertical speed indicator and eventually got the plane into a stall, then into a spin that I could not recover from. At that moment the parachute was engaged and we floated safely to the ground." An examination of the wreckage revealed no pre-impact anomalies.

History of flight

On February 6, 2006, about 1324 central standard time (CST), a Cirrus Design Corporation SR22, N751CD, piloted by an instrument-rated private pilot, sustained substantial damage on impact with terrain following a loss of control during climb in instrument meteorological conditions near Wagner, South Dakota. The personal flight was operating under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Areas of visual and instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. An instrument flight rules flight plan was on file and was activated. The pilot and passenger reported no injuries. The flight originated from the Wagner Municipal Airport, near Wagner, South Dakota, about 1315, and was en route to the Schaumburg Regional Airport, near Schaumburg, Illinois.

The pilot's accident report, in part, stated:

Filed flight plan and received IFR clearance out of Wagner, SD (AGZ)

to Schaumburg, IL (06C) at 1315 CST. ... The flight plan was entered

on the GPS [Global Positioning System] direct to function. Took off on

runway 26 at about 1320 and a right turning climb was made to the

east. When we were heading in the general direction and a climb was

established, I place the plane on autopilot. I switched the frequency to

128.0 and immediately heard the frequency buzzing and saw the radio

was in the RX mode and would not quit, my first distraction. I contacted

Minneapolis center and reported a 3700 ft altitude and climbing, they

replied to report back at 7000 or 9000 ft, I don't remember. I then

noticed that the autopilot had me in a left hand standard rate turn,

even though I was heading east at the time the autopilot was engaged,

my next distraction.

I then took over the controls to try to get up to the required altitude.

In doing so I obviously misread the vertical speed indicator and

eventually got the plane into a stall, then into a spin that I could not

recover from. At that moment the parachute was engaged and we

floated safely to the ground. Neither passenger or pilot appear to

have any injury. Everything seemed to happen so fast; I don't

believe I shut the engine or fuel mixture off. I remember getting

over the 4000 ft elevation. I also believe that the climbing turn

with no outside reference may have caused some degree of vertigo.

Personnel information

The pilot held a private pilot certificate with an airplane single-engine land and instrument rating. The pilot was issued a third class medical certificate on March 30, 2004, with the limitation for corrective lenses. The pilot's most recent biennial flight review was completed on May 10, 2005. The pilot reported that he had accumulated approximately 804 hours total flight time, of which 166 hours were in the same make and model as the accident airplane. He reported that he had accumulated 5 hours of actual instrument flight time and 38 hours of simulated instrument flight.

The pilot reported that he had attended a three-day course on the SR22 taught by the University of North Dakota for Cirrus in April 2004. He obtained the training for his instrument rating from the fixed base operator located at Sioux Falls, South Dakota and received his instrument rating on May 10, 2005.

Aircraft information

N751CD, a 2001 Cirrus Design Corporation SR22, serial number 0044, was a low-wing, fixed tri-cycle landing gear, primarily composite, and monocoque design airplane. The airplane was reported to be powered by a six-cylinder, horizontally-opposed, air-cooled, fuel-injected Teledyne Continental Motors IO-550-N7 engine, serial number 685782, rated at 310 horsepower. The airplane was equipped with a three-blade Hartzell constant speed, aluminum alloy propeller. The airplane was configured to carry four occupants. The airplane was equipped for flight in instrument meteorological conditions.

At the time of the last inspection on April 15, 2005, the airplane was reported to have accumulated a total time of 935.5 hours.

According to the SR22 Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH), the airplane uses conventional flight controls for the ailerons, elevator and rudder. The control surfaces are pilot controlled through either of the two single-handed side control yokes. The flight control system contains a combination of push rods, cables, and bell cranks for the control of the surfaces.

According to the SR22 POH:

The SR22 is not approved for spins, and has not been tested or

certified for spin recovery characteristics. The only approved and

demonstrated method of spin recovery is activation of the Cirrus

Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) ... . Because of this, if the

aircraft 'departs controlled flight,' the CAPS must be deployed.

While the stall characteristics of the SR22 make accidental entry into

a spin extremely unlikely, it is possible. Spin entry can be avoided by

using good airmanship: coordinated use of controls in turns, proper

airspeed control following the recommendations of this Handbook,

and never abusing the flight controls with accelerated inputs when

close to the stall ... .

If, at the stall, the controls are misapplied and abused accelerated

inputs are made to the elevator, rudder and/or ailerons, an abrupt wing

drop may be felt and a spiral or spin may be entered. In some cases it

may be difficult to determine if the aircraft has entered a spiral or the

beginning of a spin.

If time and altitude permit, ... determine whether the aircraft is in a

recoverable spiral/incipient spin or is unrecoverable and, therefore,

has departed controlled flight.

Warning

In all cases, if the aircraft enters an unusual attitude from which

recovery is not expected before ground impact, immediate

deployment of the CAPS is required. The minimum demonstrated

altitude loss for a CAPS deployment from a one-turn spin is 920

feet. Activation at higher altitudes provides enhanced safety

margins for parachute recoveries. Do not waste time and altitude

trying to recover from a spiral/spin before activating CAPS.

According to the SR22 POH:

CAPS [is] designed to bring the aircraft and its occupants to the

ground in the event of a life-threatening emergency. The system is

intended to save the lives of the occupants but will most likely

destroy the aircraft and may, in adverse circumstances, cause serious

injury or death to the occupants. ...

The CAPS consists of a parachute, a solid-propellant rocket to

deploy the parachute, a rocket activation handle, and a harness

imbedded within the fuselage structure.

A composite box containing the parachute and solid-propellant rocket

is mounted to the airplane structure immediately aft of the baggage

compartment bulkhead. The box is covered and protected from the

elements by a thin composite cover.

The parachute is enclosed within a deployment bag that stages the

deployment and inflation sequence. The deployment bag creates an

orderly deployment process by allowing the canopy to inflate only after

the rocket motor has pulled the parachute lines taut.

The parachute itself is a 2400-square-foot round canopy equipped with

a slider, an annular-shaped fabric panel with a diameter significantly

less than the open diameter of the canopy. A three-point harness

connects the airplane fuselage structure to the parachute.

CAPS is initiated by pulling the activation T-handle installed in the cabin

ceiling on the airplane centerline just above the pilot's right shoulder. A

placarded cover, held in place with hook and loop fasteners, covers the

T-handle and prevents tampering with the control. The cover is removed

by pulling the black tab at the forward edge of the cover. Pulling the

activation T-handle removes it from the o-ring seal that holds it in place

and takes out the a