In the wake of an amazing week in which somewhat controversial safety systems such as the BRS manufactured Cirrus Airplane Parachute System (CAPS) was credited with saving the lives of 5 people (and one alleged feline) in two aircraft in serious trouble, tragedy has struck the Cirrus community. At approximately 1400, Monday afternoon, a Cirrus SR20 (file photo, below) departed the Greenwood County airport in South Carolina, with four adults on board and went down about a mile from the 5000 foot runway, in trees and unimproved terrain.

Greenwood, about 75 miles west of Columbia, SC, was the stopping point for an SR20 owned by Attic Aircraft Leasing in Marietta, Ga. The airport lies at 631 feet, MSL. Bob Leslie, of Buzz Aviation told ANN that the aircraft had asked for the courtesy car which was unavailable due to prior commitment earlier in the day. The four occupants of the aircraft got off the aircraft, traveled off site on a reported construction errand of less than one hour, and returned. They took on no fuel and departed with the aircraft on a warm day (27 degrees, C, according to published reports), with light winds. Leslie reported hearing the aircraft depart with no evidence of difficulty, but did not observe the effort. Shortly thereafter, he reported hearing and feeling that "whump" of the aircraft's impact with trees in terrain less than a mile from the runway and near to a housing area.

Published media reports note that local Sheriff's Lt. Jimmy Boggs said that, "The plane just totally disintegrated when it crashed to the ground... I went to the crash site, I didn't even see the first piece of scrap. It was just a big burnt area where it had landed."

Leslie went to the scene immediately and reported that there were no survivors and that an aggressive  post-crash fire was consuming the aircraft. Asked about a possible parachute deployment, he noted that the chute appeared "out" but lying close by to the fuselage, indicating possible impact deployment or that the BRS' rocket cooked off in the fire and partially deployed the canopy. There is no evidence that the BRS unit was deployed in flight. 

The aircraft was piloted by Troy Sufferling, 37, of Kennesaw, Ga. He and three passengers were declared dead at the scene. The other three on board were believed to be Mexican nationals involved in the construction of a local grocery store. Questions about loading were some of the first raised by Cirrus pilots who have talked to ANN throughout the day. Depending on the fuel on board, four "normal" adults and a light/moderate fuel load are well within the capabilities of the aircraft, both in terms of allowable weight and potential CG. Leslie reported that the pilot and passengers on board the aircraft appeared of "normal" size and weight.

ANN will have more information as it becomes available...

FMI: http://www.scaeronautics.com/onedata.asp?FAAID=GRD, www.cirrusdesign.com