Alert Created After Recent SR-2X Accidents

Cirrus Aircraft has sent the following letter to each of their owners, as well as a number of others in the GA community after a number of recent SR-2X accidents. The company has suggested a "Safety Stand Down" as well as continuing flight training as a means to seeking better flight safety... 

Cirrus Statement

An important part of our relationship with you is meaningful communication, especially around issues that are important to the entire Cirrus community. Several recent accidents involving Cirrus aircraft highlight the need for us to focus our collective attention on safe flight practices, particularly during the landing and go-around phases. Both Cirrus Aircraft and COPA urge you to carefully review this safety alert as well as the following suggestions:

First, we are asking each of you to review the basic information on how to manage your aircraft in all phases of flight. Please re-read your Pilot's Operating Handbook, Section 2, Limitations, Section 3 Emergency Procedures, and Section 4, Normal Procedures. Also, review Section 3, Standard Operating Procedures, of the Flight Operations Manual. Look for expanded guidance on normal operating procedures with special attention to approach stability, traffic patterns, landing procedures and go-around. Excerpts from the Cirrus Flight Operations Manual describe the procedures and the speeds for normal landings can be found here. Please take the time to review these procedures prior to your next Cirrus flight.

Copies of these books are available online at the COPA website and through the Cirrus Connection store.

Second, we are requesting each and every one of you to conduct a currency flight. All company pilots for Cirrus Aircraft follow a structured safety program (in sales, training, and flight operations) - and our safety record shows that it works. We are requesting that all Cirrus pilots conduct a currency flight with a qualified Cirrus Training Center (CTC) or Cirrus Standardized Instructor Pilot (CSIP), regardless of your total PIC time, time-in-type, or years of successful flight. This is the best way for all pilots to identify and correct bad habits that may have slipped into our routines over time.

A specific syllabus for this recurrent training has been given to every CTC and CSIP. The 1.0 to 1.5 flight hours that you commit to this training event should improve your airspeed control, touchdown accuracy, approach stability, and most importantly, the overall safety of every flight. The training will also help develop your proficiency and comfort level with go-around and power off landings.

The recent incidents that prompted this Safety Alert have been discussed in various forums, including COPA, and many of the comments have focused upon improper landing speeds. Airspeed control is an important element of establishing a stabilized approach to land, which in turn plays a key role in the safety and quality of any landing. Therefore it is critical that you understand the energy management of your aircraft to assure the proper speeds are used throughout the traffic pattern to achieve a safe and comfortable landing for you and your passengers.

Further to this effort, we want to stress the importance of establishing a long-term commitment to maintaining safe flying habits. Both Cirrus Aircraft and COPA encourage a semi-annual program of recurrent training with a CTC or CSIP. We also encourage you to attend a Cirrus Pilot Proficiency Program (CPPP) weekend event, held both in the US and Europe, to learn a wealth of Cirrus-specific knowledge and fly with some of the most experienced Cirrus instructors in the world. These events are centered around this very concept of staying proficient and avoiding the traps of complacency. Several CPPP events for the balance of 2010 and new events for 2011 will appear shortly. Visit www.cirruspilots.org for more information.

If you know other Cirrus pilots in your area, we strongly encourage you to pass this important message on to them to participate in this important currency effort.

Safety is the highest priority at Cirrus and COPA, but safety is up to all of us. Let's get out and enjoy flying while raising the safety bar even higher.

FMI: www.cirrusaircraft.com