#CIRRUS SR20 PRICE SERIES#

This is an estimate based on information provided by Cirrus. Starting with the wide view, we estimate that the Cirrus fleetwide total hours stood at about 550,000 hours as of late January 2005. Its not the best way of comparing apples to apples, but its the best data available to us. Fair warning: Such analysis has to be taken in context. Lacking this kind of data, we can make reasonable estimates of hours flown and we can also measure accidents as a ratio of total aircraft produced or registered. First of all, what constitutes a like type? And to calculate accurate accident rates, you need accurate hours-flown data, something that has proven elusive to obtain, at best. But this is a task mired in a world of fuzzy data and subjective judgment. The only credible way to judge the relative safety of the Cirrus line of aircraft is to measure its accident rate against airplanes of like type. None of the poor decision-making involved in these two and similar accidents-involving a Cirrus or any other aircraft-can realistically be blamed on the airplane. The Boards probable cause determination inevitably references the pilots inadvertent flight into IMC and failure to maintain clearance with terrain. The NTSB noted on the day of the accident, the pilot did not file a flight plan or receive a formal weather briefing from a FAA flight service station. On November 3, 2002, another VFR-only SR20 pilot managed to do pretty much the same thing. No anomalies were noted that would have prevented normal aircraft operation, the NTSB said. A cursory look at each fatal accident reveals only that pilots flying Cirrus airplanes get themselves into the same kinds of situations as pilots flying other airplanes.Īs one example, the VFR-only Private pilot of an SR20 flew his perfectly good airplane into a mountain near Sierra Vista, Ariz., on April 10, 2001.According to the NTSB, Airmets for mountain obscurement, moderate turbulence and moderate rime/mixed icing conditions were in effect for the area. Similarly, 13 of the 29 accidents/incidents resulted in a fatality, with five for the SR20. During that time, 29 Cirrus accidents or incidents made it into the NTSBs files. To see if there were any common threads among other Cirrus accidents, we looked at the NTSBs data involving Cirrus airplanes beginning in 1999 through the end of February 2005. Although the NTSB has not yet determined a probable cause of those accidents, its unlikely theyre related. The results tell us that Cirrus may be the victim of its own success.Īs the sidebar on the next page highlights, three Cirrus SR22s were involved in fatal crashes in as many weeks earlier this year. We talked with several industry watchers-including Cirrus CEO Alan Klapmeier-and insurance executives. We wanted to find out how new and older Cessnas compared along with other models, including offerings from Diamond, Mooney and Lancair. To find out if the problem is perceived or real, we exhaustively reviewed the accident records of six other major airplane types that could be loosely considered to be in the Cirrus category. This is in stark contrast to airplanes originally designed and certificated in the 1950s, but which can still be bought new. In addition to the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS), the airplanes include other safety-enhancing details like high-G seats. Are we just obsessing on every Cirrus crash because it, well, isnt a Cessna or a Mooney? After all, Cirruses are designed to be safer than their peers. When they do, we become both surprised and intrigued. At a casual glance, the reverse appears to be true the model seems almost snakebit.īut is it really? Or is this a perception problem, one involving high expectations: We dont expect Cirrus airplanes to crash. Like it or not, every Cirrus crash-and there have been 29-has attracted the scrutiny of the aviation press simply because the airplane appears to not be delivering on its promise of being safer.

#CIRRUS SR20 PRICE SERIES#

Of course, the FAA did certify the airplane and Cirrus briefly overtookCessna last year as the leading builder of single-engine piston airplanes.īut what about that other promise Cirrus implied, the one that this new design would be the safest GA airplane ever? A series of high-profile crashes-the latest in California in which the parachute may have ripped away from the airplane in a high-speed deployment-has dogged Cirrus attempt to position itself as a safety leader. And even if it did, Cirrus would never be able to sell such a crackpot idea.

When Cirrus announced more than a decade ago that it would produce an airplane with a built-in parachute and that it would become the best-selling airplane of the next century, the doubters said the FAA would never certify it.

An Aviation safety Magazine Special Report

Cirrus sr20 price