A Skilled Pilot, a Routine Approach, an Unexpected Catastrophe

We know that his airplane stalled, but why it stalled is still a mystery.

Peter Garrison

Friday, November 18, 2022 at 12:10 PM ET

Verified

Greene County Regional Airport in Ohio [Courtesy: Greene County, Ohio]

Key Takeaways:

A Cirrus SR22T crashed on final approach, killing the pilot, due to an aerodynamic stall and spin during a steep base-to-final turn.
The NTSB attributed the stall to the pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed in the turn, an issue likely exacerbated by an unusually low and close-in approach pattern, possibly due to rushing to land before the FBO closed.
Contributing factors may have included residual airframe icing from earlier flight, a gusty crosswind, and potential overconfidence given the pilot's experience and familiarity with the aircraft and home field.

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On a freezing January evening in 2016, a Cirrus SR22T approached Greene County Regional Airport (I19) near Dayton, Ohio, its home field, after a 100 nm IFR hop from Indianapolis.

Conditions at the airport were VMC, with a 1,700-foot ceiling, 10-mile visibility and a 9-knot wind gusting to 14 and varying from 240 to 330 degrees. The sun had just set, and the temperature on the ground was 32 degrees Fahrenheit.