Cirrus Design Corp. SR22 accident near Orlando, Florida, August 4, 2005
On August 4, 2005 at about 4:00 pm local time, a Cirrus Design Corp. SR22, registered N513CD, was substantially damaged in an accident near Orlando, Florida (Orlando Executive airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The manufacturer's defective wheel brake assembly design and a leaking wheel brake, resulting in an overheated brake assembly and a wheel fire during an aborted takeoff.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 4, 2005 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- Orlando, Florida · Orlando Executive · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cirrus Design Corp. SR22
- Registration
- N513CD · registry record · serial 924
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial certificated pilot was departing on an IFR cross-country personal flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91. During the takeoff roll, he noted an intermittent loss of airspeed indication, and aborted the takeoff. After exiting the runway, he stopped the airplane on a taxiway, shut off the engine, and exited to check the pitot/static tube. He smelled an odor, and saw white smoke coming from the right main landing gear tire wheel pant. He heard a "poof", and saw flames engulf the right wheel. Postaccident examination of the right brake assembly revealed that the right brake caliper was heat damaged, cracked and deformed. The O-rings around the caliper pistons were thermally damaged. The airplane's nose wheel casters freely, and ground steering is accomplished by differential braking of the main landing gear wheels. The airplane's Pilot's Operating handbook (POH) cautions pilots that when taxiing, they should use minimum power, and notes that excessive braking may result in overheated or damaged brakes. Two months before the accident, the manufacturer issued an Owner Service Advisory (OSA), which advised pilots to not ride the brakes, which could produce excessive heat, premature brake wear, and the increased possibility of brake failure. The airplane's maintenance records contained several entries about the brake system. Eight months before the accident, the left brake pads were replaced, and the brake reservoir needed servicing. Two weeks later, the right brake was reported as leaking, and the maintenance discrepancy noted, in part: "Removed brake calipers, found O-rings on pistons to be excessively heated due to excessive brake usage, causing piston to blow out. Found linings with cracks and chips missing." Two months before the wheel fire, all the brake linings were again replaced. Following the accident, the manufacturer issued Service Bulletin SB2X-32-13, on December 15, 2005, which called for the installation of improved brake assemblies. On January 18, 2006, the manufacturer issued Mandatory Service Bulletin, SB2X-32-14, that added temperature indicators on the brake assemblies, modified the wheel pant assemblies to provide access to the temperature indicators, and revised the airplane's POH. On February 9, 2006, the FAA issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB), CE-06-30, which recommended compliance with the manufacturer's service bulletins.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,500 hours in all; 275 in this make and model; 3,800 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 511 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 1, 2005; 56 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-550 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: KORL Orlando FL at 3:10 pm
- Destination: KTPF Tampa FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 25, 6,003 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 30.09 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 pm from KORL
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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.