The National Transportation Safety Board did not travel to the scene of this accident.
Additional Participating Entities:
Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Greensboro, North Carolina
Continental Motors; Mobile, Alabama
Cirrus Aircraft; Duluth, Minnesota
Docket And Docket Items - National Transportation Safety Board: https://dms.ntsb.gov/pubdms
Aviation Accident Data Summary - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf
RAN AIR LLC: http://registry.faa.gov/N334CM
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, November 13, 2015 in Jefferson, NC
Probable Cause Approval Date: 10/03/2016
Aircraft: CIRRUS DESIGN CORP SR22, registration: N334CM
Injuries: 2 Uninjured.
NTSB investigators may not have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
The private pilot was conducting a long personal cross-country flight. The pilot reported that the airplane was in cruise flight for almost 1 hour at 11,500 ft and that everything was normal. He then noticed that the autopilot pitch was starting to increase in order to maintain altitude and that the manifold air pressure was decreasing. At this time, the rpm and oil pressure were normal. The airplane then started losing altitude, and the manifold air pressure gauge’s needle was shaking. The pilot increased the throttle, but he noted no change in power or rpm. The pilot attempted to divert to the nearest airport, but on final approach, the headwind was stronger than he expected, and he knew that the airplane was not going to reach the runway because the engine had lost all power. He subsequently deployed the airplane's parachute system, and the airplane descended into a field. Examination of the wreckage revealed that adequate fuel was onboard. The engine was subsequently test run to full power with no anomalies noted.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
A total loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined during a postaccident test run of the engine.
On November 13, 2015, about 0910 eastern standard time, a Cirrus SR22, N334CM, operated by private individual, was substantially damaged during a forced landing, following a total loss of engine power near Jefferson, North Carolina. The private pilot and passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the flight, which was destined for Lancaster Airport (LNS), Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The personal flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The flight originated from Dekalb-Peachtree Airport (PDK), Atlanta, Georgia about 0800.
According to the pilot, he was in cruise flight for almost 1 hour at 11,500 feet and everything was normal. Then he noticed the autopilot pitch of the airplane was starting to increase in an effort to maintain altitude and the manifold air pressure was decreasing. At this time, the rpm and oil pressure were normal. The airplane started losing altitude and the needle for the manifold air pressure gauge was shaking. The pilot increased throttle, but no change in power or rpm was indicated. The pilot further stated that he diverted direct to the nearest airport, which was Ashe County Airport (GEV), Jefferson, North Carolina. The airplane was high over the airport and the pilot circled the airport three times to lose altitude. On his last turn to final approach, the headwinds were stronger than expected and the pilot knew the airplane was not going to reach the runway as the engine had lost all power. At that time, he deployed the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System and the airplane descended into a field.
Examination of the wreckage at the accident site revealed that the firewall was damaged. The engine cowlings were crushed and the propeller blades were bent. The airframe and engine were examined at a recovery facility in preparation for a test-run. The fuel that was drained at the accident site was used for the engine run. The propeller was removed and a spare propeller was placed on the engine. The airplane was secured to a trailer and the engine mounts were also secured. The engine started after approximately one to two revolutions of the propeller. Engine oil pressure was 59 psi and came down slightly after warm up. The engine was set to 1,000 rpm and allowed to run for 4 to 5 minutes before the engine was shut down with the mixture lever so replacement manifold air pressure and fuel flow gage could be utilized. The engine was restarted and all gauges were functional. The engine was not run to high power due to the engine mounts being fractured. There were no discrepancies noted that would have prevented the engine from reaching its designed rated horsepower.
The engine was then sent to the manufacturer for a full power test-run. The engine was secured to an engine run stand and a three-bladed propeller was installed. The engine started immediately and was idled for several minutes to warm up before the high power runs. The engine was run at several different power settings from idle to full power and all parameters were within manufactures specification limits. After approximately 30 minutes of run time, the engine was shut down and no anomalies were noted.
According to FAA records, the pilot held a private pilot certificate with an instrument rating. He held an FAA third-class medical certificate, issued May 22, 2012. The pilot reported that he had accumulated 335 hours total flight experience, and 273 hours total flight experience in the accident airplane make and model at the time of the accident.
According to FAA and aircraft maintenance records, the airplane was originally issued an airworthiness certificate on June 9, 2004, and registered to the owner on December 26, 2012. It was powered by a Continental IO-550-N engine and driven by a three bladed Hartzell propeller. According to maintenance records the most recent annual inspection was conducted on July 29, 2015, with a recorded time in service of 2,559.0 hours. The engine was overhauled on May 4, 2015, and had accumulated 112.1 total hours at the time of the accident.
ASHE COUNTY, N.C. — A small plane made an emergency landing Friday morning after experiencing engine problems, according to officials.
The Cirrus SR22 force landed around 9:10 a.m. on Greensboro Road in the Shatley Springs area of the county.
Highway Patrol confirmed to Channel 9 responded to a plane accident on Dog Creek Road.
The Cirrus SR22 aircraft landed in a field about an eighth of a mile from the end of the runway at Ashe County Airport in Jefferson, North Carolina.
The Ashe County sheriff told Channel 9 that the plane landed in a field on Dog Creek Road and the pilot and passenger onboard are OK.
Neil Renfroe and pilot Rishi Nagrani were in the Cirrus SR22 when the engine quit.
"I would like to have put the plane down with a dead stick so we could fly that thing out of here once we fixed the engine," Nagrani said. "But the engine was out and we weren't going to make the field."
"All of a sudden, he was like 'We got to pull the chute,'" Renfroe said.
The Federal Aviation Administration said the pilot reported engine problems and deployed the airframe parachute system before landing.
The flight departed from DeKalb-Peachtree Airport in Atlanta and was headed to Lancaster Airport in Pennsylvania.
Channel 9 reporter Dave Faherty is at the scene and got video of the wind flipping the plane over after it landed into a nearby creek.
The two men didn't see that happen but shared what they said to each other earlier, seconds after the safe landing.
"This is a direct quote. I said to him, 'You're going to see your son. He's about to have a son in the next couple of days and we're going to make it,'" Nagrani said.
"When I got out of the plane, I screamed at the top of my lungs," Renfroe said. "And then we hug each other."
Sources:
http://www.wgal.com
http://www.wxii12.com
http://www.wsoctv.com
NTSB Identification: ERA16LA040
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, November 13, 2015 in Jefferson, NC
Aircraft: CIRRUS DESIGN CORP SR22, registration: N334CM
Injuries: 2 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 November 13, 2015, about 0910 eastern standard time, a Cirrus SR22, N334CM, operated by private individual, was substantially damaged during a forced landing, following a total loss of engine power near Jefferson, North Carolina. The private pilot and passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the flight, which was destined for Lancaster Airport (LNS), Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The personal flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The flight originated from Dekalb-Peachtree Airport (PDK), Atlanta, Georgia about 0800.
According to the pilot, he was in cruise flight for almost 1 hour at 11,500 feet and everything was normal. Then he noticed the autopilot pitch of the airplane was starting to increase in an effort to maintain altitude and the manifold air pressure was decreasing. At this time, the rpm and oil pressure were normal. The airplane started losing altitude and the manifold air pressure gauge was shaking. The pilot increased throttle, but no change in power or rpm was noticed. The pilot further stated that he deviated direct to the nearest airport, which was Ashe County Airport (GEV), Jefferson, North Carolina. The airplane was high over the airport and the pilot circled the airport three times to lose altitude. On his last turn to final approach, the headwinds were stronger than expected and the pilot knew the airplane was not going to reach the runway as the engine had lost all power. At that time, he deployed the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System and the airplane descended into a field.
Examination of the wreckage at the accident site by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the engine mounts were fractured and caused firewall damage. The engine cowlings were crushed and the propeller blades were bent.
The airframe and engine have been retained for further investigation.
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