Cirrus Design CORP SR22 accident near Silver Peak, Nevada, April 10, 2013
On April 10, 2013 at about 4:26 pm local time, a 2006 Cirrus Design CORP SR22, registered N205KT, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Silver Peak, Nevada. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s incapacitation due to sleeping pills, which led to the airplane impacting terrain in an autopilot-controlled descent following a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 10, 2013 · about 4:26 pm local time
- Place
- Silver Peak, Nevada · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cirrus Design CORP SR22, built 2006
- Registration
- N205KT · registry record · serial 2112
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane departed and climbed to a cruise altitude of 16,500 feet. The pilot set the autopilot to continue the flight over an area of sparsely populated desert terrain. He stated that he then took sleeping pills in an attempt to take his life. When the fuel was exhausted in the selected tank, the engine lost power. The airplane's autopilot was equipped with an envelope protection feature, which placed the airplane into a controlled descent that was maintained to ground impact. Local law enforcement personnel who responded to the scene of the accident found the airplane relatively intact with the wings, empennage, and engine still attached to the fuselage and the injured pilot seated in the left front seat.
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
- Miscellaneous/other during enroute (cruise) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Psychological › Mental/emotional state › (general) › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid management
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,100 hours in all; 1,100 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 890 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, September 17, 2012
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor IO-550-N (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HND Las Vegas NV at 2:52 pm
- Destination: Silver Peak NV
- Flight plan: not recorded
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 19 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 10°F (-12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.23 inHg
- Observation at 4:56 pm from TPH, 29 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.