Cirrus Design CORP SR22T accident near Milledgeville, Georgia, April 24, 2013
On April 24, 2013 at about 5:00 pm local time, a 2012 Cirrus Design CORP SR22T, registered N228DF, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Milledgeville, Georgia (Baldwin County Airport). 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot’s failure to maintain a proper approach path for landing and the flight instructor’s delayed remedial action, which resulted in a runway undershoot and collision with a taxiway sign.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 24, 2013 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Milledgeville, Georgia · Baldwin County Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cirrus Design CORP SR22T NO SERIES, built 2012
- Registration
- N228DF · registry record · serial 0282
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the flight instructor, he and the student pilot were practicing short field landings. When the airplane was about 20 feet above the ground on approach to the runway, the airspeed suddenly decreased. The student pilot applied full engine power, the airplane yawed to the left, and the airplane impacted the ground before it reached the runway. The flight instructor took the flight controls, decreased the engine power to idle, and applied the brakes; however, the airplane struck a taxiway sign that was located on the left side of the runway, resulting in substantial damage to the left wing. The flight instructor reported no preimpact 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
- Landing area overshoot during landing defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Descent/approach/glide path › Not attained/maintained
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Incorrect action performance › Student pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Instructor/check pilot
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,878 hours in all; 390 in this make and model; 137 in the last 90 days; 61 in the last 30 days; 1,671 as pilot in command; 1,470 on instruments
- Last flight review: January 4, 2012
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 198 hours in all; 189 in this make and model; 33 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 117 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 198 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 17, 2013
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor TSIO-550 SER (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OKZ Sandersville GA at 4:10 pm
- Destination: SAV Savannah GA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 28, 5,509 ft by 99 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,600 ft
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.12 inHg
- Observation at 4:55 pm from MLJ
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
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.