I wrote here that the door on N146CK, the Cirrus SR22 that crashed August 4 at Deer Valley, opened in-flight. Yesterday, Fox News in Phoenix aired video from a security camera that captured the impact. Here are frame grabs from the video showing the open door.
Usually, when a door pops open in flight, aerodynamic forces keep
Bill King
Vice President of Business Administration
Cirrus Aircraft
Duluth, Minnesota 55811
Dear Bill:
I own one of your aircraft. There are some nice things about the Cirrus. But a few things, from a safety standpoint, really suck. First, the doors don’t stay closed. Second, too many pilots and passengers are getting killed when pilots try to land the thing. Third, the fuel gauges don’t work.
I read your comments on each of these issues in today’s Duluth News Tribune. Considering that they come from a company that prides itself on “celebrating safety,” I found some of the comments disturbing.
The doors.
Bill, they pop open. A lot. It’s always a distraction when it happens. If they pop open at a bad time, it can spell real trouble. More on that here.
I read how you flew from one airport to another a few weeks ago with a door that wasn’t shut, andContinue Reading A Letter to Cirrus Aircraft: Please Fix Your Plane
Cirrus N146CK crashed on August 4 at Deer Valley, Airzona. The pilot was killed. Just before the accident, the aircraft’s door popped open. We know that because the pilot reported to air traffic control that his door was open and that he needed to return to the airport to close it. Plus, surveillance cameras confirmed that the pilot’s door was indeed ajar.
The plane’s door popped open? What’s with that?
The Cirrus doors are poorly designed. It’s that simple. They just don’t stay shut in flight.
The plane flies okay after a door pops open. But the distraction can be dangerous, and can lead to a loss of control, as demonstrated by this 2009 Cirrus crash. Following the 2009 accident, JohnContinue Reading Cirrus Crash at Deer Valley, Arizona: Door Opened (Yet Again. . .)