Cirrus SR22, N22WX: Accident occurred September 07, 2014 in Langola Township, Minnesota

Private plane with 4 aboard forced to land on central Minnesota road

Mechanical problems forced the pilot of a single-engine airplane to make an emergency landing short of St. Cloud Airport, damaging one of its wings but sparing injury among the four people aboard, authorities said Monday.

The unexpected landing occurred about 1:45 p.m. Sunday northeast of Rice, Minn., on 15th Avenue NE., and ended just short of 160th Street, according to the Benton County ­Sheriff’s Office.

The pilot, Craig Burfeind, 52, of Chanhassen, said he detected trouble with the Cirrus SR22 while flying from Mankato to Breezy Point in central Minnesota.

Hoping to make it to the St. Cloud Airport about 20 miles to the south, Burfeind settled for landing on the road and then veering into a ditch to avoid hitting a vehicle, the Sheriff’s Office added. At some point, a wing hit a utility pole support wire and was slightly damaged.

The Federal Aviation Administration will look into the circumstances of the emergency landing.

- Source:   http://www.startribune.com

N22WX LLC: http://registry.faa.gov/N22WX

NTSB Identification: CEN14LA486
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, September 07, 2014 in Langola Township, MN
Aircraft: CIRRUS DESIGN CORP SR22, registration: N22WX
Injuries: 4 Uninjured.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators may not have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.

On September 7, 2014, about 1330 central daylight time, a Cirrus SR22 airplane, N22WX, was substantially damaged during a forced landing near Langola Township, Minnesota. The commercial pilot and three passengers were not injured. The airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was registered to N22WX LLC and operated by a private individual under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. The flight originated from the Mankato Regional Airport, Mankato, Minnesota, about 1255.

According to the pilot, while at cruise about 4,500 feet mean sea level, the airplane’s airspeed began to decay and the engine’s exhaust gas temperatures began to decrease. The pilot attempted to restore power to the engine without success. About one minute later the engine stopped producing power. The pilot performed a forced landing to a rural road. During the landing roll the pilot maneuvered the airplane to miss an oncoming car and collided with a utility pole guy wire. None of the occupants were injured, however substantial damage was sustained to the airplane’s left wing.

The airplane was retained for further examination.