Cirrus Design CORP SR22 accident near Lancaster, Texas, October 17, 2015
On October 17, 2015, a 2002 Cirrus Design CORP SR22, registered N849CD, was destroyed in an accident during approach (VFR pattern final) near Lancaster, Texas (Lancaster Rgnl airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to maintain a proper glidepath during a night visual approach, which resulted in impact with a power line. Contributing to the accident was an inoperative precision approach path indicator.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 17, 2015
- Place
- Lancaster, Texas · Lancaster Rgnl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cirrus Design CORP SR22, built 2002
- Registration
- N849CD · no longer on the register · serial 0224
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The private pilot reported that he was flying a night visual pattern to a nontowered airport. Due to another airplane on final approach, the pilot extended the downwind leg to create spacing. While on the extended final in a rural area with low lighting, the pilot descended the airplane well below a proper glidepath to the runway and struck an unlit high-voltage power line located about 1 mile from the runway. After feeling a jolt, the passenger deployed the airframe's parachute system. The airplane subsequently became suspended in a second set of power lines, and the pilot and passenger safely egressed the airplane. At the time of the accident, the precision approach path indicators (PAPI) for both runways were inoperative due to maintenance. A notice to airmen (NOTAM) for the PAPI closure was active at the time of the accident, and the pilot was aware of the NOTAM. The dark conditions and extended final likely created a visual illusion in which the pilot thought he was higher than he was; without an operative PAPI, the pilot had limited external references to assist him in maintaining a proper glidepath during the approach.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT) during approach (VFR pattern final) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Descent/approach/glide path › Not attained/maintained
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Wire › Awareness of condition
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring environment › Pilot
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Light condition › Dark › Effect on operation
- factor Environmental issues › Operating environment › Approach aid coverage/avail › Approach lighting › Effect on operation
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 935 hours in all; 265 in this make and model; 36 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 870 as pilot in command; 0 on instruments
- Last flight review: July 22, 2015
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 832 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 18, 2015; 3 hours since
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor IO-550 SERIES (piston); 832 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: JWY Waxahachie TX at 11:50 pm
- Destination: LNC Lancaster TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 31, 6,502 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 050° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.22 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
2 documents, released by the NTSB on December 17, 2015. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Photos of Accident Airplane | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.