Cirrus Design CORP SR20 accident near Litchfield, Michigan, June 19, 2024
On June 19, 2024 at about 3:23 pm local time, a 2006 Cirrus Design CORP SR20, registered N154WF, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering near Litchfield, Michigan. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
Preview. This page is not yet listed for search engines.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot’s loss of control and the flight instructor’s delayed remedial reaction which resulted in a spin.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 19, 2024 · about 3:23 pm local time
- Place
- Litchfield, Michigan · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cirrus Design CORP SR20, built 2006
- Registration
- N154WF · registry record · serial 1638
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While practicing power-off stalls during an instructional flight, the student pilot was flying when the airplane entered a spin to the right. The flight instructor attempted remedial action but was unable to recover from the spin. The flight instructor pulled the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) handle about 2,800 ft msl. The CAPS system deployed the parachute, and the airplane descended to the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the composite fuselage from the firewall aft to the CAPS rocket/parachute exit area, and the rudder spar. There were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
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
- Loss of control in flight during maneuvering defining event
- Aerodynamic stall/spin during maneuvering
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Instructor/check pilot
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Student/instructed pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: helicopter
- Flight time: 398 hours in all; 327 in this make and model; 95 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 271 as pilot in command; 154 on instruments
- Last flight review: January 8, 2024
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 8 hours in all; 8 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,509 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 13, 2024; 11 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,000 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO360ES27B (piston); 1,385 hours total
- Operator: Board Of Trustees Of Western Michigan University
The flight
- Departed from: BTL Battle Creek MI at 2:00 pm
- Destination: BTL Battle Creek MI
- Flight plan: none
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 30.28 inHg
- Observation at 11:15 am from JYM, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
5 documents, released by the NTSB on October 22, 2024. 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 | Cirrus SR20 Flight Manual Excerpts CEN24LA230 | PDF, 4 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Aircraft Damage Report Caps Deployment CEN24LA230 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 4 | Investigation Photographs CEN24LA230 | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 5 | Certificate of Party Representative Cirrus CEN24LA230 | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CEN24LA230.