Cirrus Design CORP SR22 accident near Clearwater, Florida, May 5, 2017
On May 5, 2017 at about 11:22 pm local time, a 2007 Cirrus Design CORP SR22, registered N271TS, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach (VFR go-around) near Clearwater, Florida (Clearwater Airpark airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's decision to attempt to land while a line of rain showers with microburst activity was crossing the airport, which resulted in a loss of control during a subsequent attempted go-around.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 5, 2017 · about 11:22 pm local time
- Place
- Clearwater, Florida · Clearwater Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cirrus Design CORP SR22 NO SERIES, built 2007
- Registration
- N271TS · no longer on the register · serial 2619
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
At the end of a personal cross-country flight, the private pilot terminated radar services with an air route traffic control center and entered the traffic pattern to land on runway 16 at an uncontrolled airport as a line of rain showers approached the airport. An airline transport pilot (ATP) who had just landed on the runway said that the wind was from 240° to 270° about 40 knots, and he had used full aileron deflection to maintain control. After the ATP landed, the wind increased, and it began to rain. The ATP knew the accident pilot was behind him in the traffic pattern and warned him over the radio about the wind. The pilot acknowledged and continued with the approach. When the accident airplane was over the runway, an airport employee heard the airplane's engine go to full power and saw the airplane in a vertical climb before it rolled left onto its back and descended out of view. The employee drove to the accident site and found that the airplane had crashed just east of the runway. A review of weather information indicated that a downburst/microburst/gust front was moving eastward across the airport at the time of the accident. Postaccident examination of the airplane and engine revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical deficiencies that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane or engine at the time of the accident. The airplane's flaps were observed at 100% (fully extended) postaccident. The airplane likely entered an uncontrolled descent and impacted the ground before the pilot was able to raise the flaps to 50%, as required during a go-around.
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
- Windshear or thunderstorm during landing
- Loss of control in flight during approach (VFR go-around) defining event
- Other weather encounter during uncontrolled descent
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Convective weather › Thunderstorm › Effect on equipment
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 244.3 hours in all; 23.6 in this make and model
- Last flight review: November 4, 2016
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,670.6 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 9, 2016; 50 hours since
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor IO-550-N (piston); 170 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MAO Mullins SC at 8:20 pm
- Destination: CLW Clearwater FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 16, 4,108 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 14 knots, gusting 23
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,500 ft; scat at 3,200 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.79 inHg
- Observation at 11:35 pm from CLW
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
19 documents, released by the NTSB on October 31, 2018. 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.
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.
