SR22T Seemed to Crash During a Go-Around Attempt at Macon County Airport

A Cirrus SR22T crashed in a field near Macon County Airport (1A5) in Franklin, North Carolina, on September 18, missing an elementary school by just a couple hundred feet. All three occupants, songwriter Brett James, wife Melody Carole, and step-daughter Meryl Maxwell Wilson, tragically lost their lives in the incident.

The aircraft, a Cirrus SR22T G5 GTS Carbon registered as N218VB, took off from John C. Tune Airport (JWN) just outside of Nashville, Tennessee, at around 12:40 pm CDT. Its filed destination was Macon County Airport (1A5) in Franklin, North Carolina, located just over 200 miles southeast of the departure airport.

The flight seemed to go seamlessly up until the Cirrus neared Macon County. According to flight tracking data, the aircraft began descending from its 11,000-foot cruise altitude around 57 minutes into the flight, still pointing directly towards the airport. The pilot dropped down to around 6,500 feet and was just a few miles from the airport when it turned right towards a sort of high base leg for Runway 7. The Cirrus then entered a left-hand 360-degree turn while descending to 3,400 feet. With the terrain, the pilot was just over a thousand feet above the ground at this time.

ADS-B data shows that the plane overflew the runway and went around in a short left-hand traffic pattern. It leveled off over the runway again, this time only 40 feet above the ground, before beginning a shallow climb, slowing to around 70 knots and veering left. The plane ended up in a small field between the airport and Iotla Valley Elementary School, with no post-crash fire.

Three occupants were onboard at the time of the crash, including Grammy-winning songwriter and owner of the aircraft Brett James. He is most well-known for his work on Carrie Underwood’s “Jesus, Take the Wheel,” Martina McBride’s “Blessed,” and Kenny Chesney’s “When the Sun Goes Down.” James, along with his wife and step-daughter, did not survive the accident.

The Cirrus has already been removed from the crash site for investigation. NTSB preliminary reports are typically available within 30 days.

FMI: https://maconcountyairport.com