Accident Summary
On October 11, 2023, about 2247 eastern daylight time, a Cirrus SR-22 airplane, N253BC, was substantially damaged when it struck trees near Martinsville, Virginia. The pilot and three passengers were not injured. The airplane was operating as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.
Flight Details
The pilot refueled the airplane, completed a preflight inspection, updated the airplane’s electronic flight instrument system, and departed Blue Ridge Airport (MTV) for a night visual flight rules cross-country flight to Oklahoma. During takeoff, after establishing a positive rate of climb at 95 knots, the pilot retracted the flaps, which had been set to 50%. Shortly thereafter, the PFD blinked off momentarily and then reappeared with a “Taxiway! Taxiway!” banner. The MFD displayed a “completely orange” screen showing an autopilot track turning left. The pilot looked up and saw the airplane flying directly toward a large pine tree. He attempted to avoid the tree, but the airplane struck trees to the left of and about 1.1 miles from the departure end of the runway.
After impact, the pilot maintained control, the engine continued to develop full power, and the airplane climbed to traffic pattern altitude. The pilot reported the airplane was “very shaky” and that he could not see the altitude on the PFD. He repeatedly pressed the autopilot disconnect button, circled back toward MTV, trimmed for landing, and made a safe landing on runway 13. He then cleared the runway and shut off the engine.
Damage and Examination
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wings and windscreen. Examination of the pitot tube revealed its inlet was obstructed by material consistent with the impacted trees.
Avionics and Systems
The airplane was equipped with two Garmin GDU 1250A 12-inch displays: a PFD in front of the pilot and an MFD above the center console. The system had a display backup mode that automatically switches essential flight information to the remaining display if a failure is detected. Standby instruments for airspeed, attitude, and altitude were powered independently. After the accident, all displays and standby instruments powered up and operated normally.
The avionics included the Garmin SurfaceWatch feature, which provides visual and aural annunciations for potential runway incursions. The “Taxiway” alert the pilot experienced is part of this system. The system could also provide a Negative Climb Rate After Takeoff alert and a “Too Low, Terrain” caution, but no terrain warnings were recorded during the flight.
Recorded Data
The Appareo RDM-300 digital flight data recorder captured the flight. Data showed the takeoff roll began about 2246:14, rotation at 77 knots at 2246:29, and flaps retraction at 2246:48 at 1,100 feet. The airplane climbed to 1,134 feet then descended for 15 seconds despite full power, reaching a maximum descent rate of 736 feet per minute and airspeed increasing to 137 knots. At 2247:11, the autopilot engaged; at 2247:12, at 1,031 feet, indicated airspeed dropped to 0 knots, consistent with tree impact. The airplane then climbed to 2,270 feet. Indicated airspeed remained between 0 and 43 knots for the remainder of the recording. The autopilot disengaged at 2249:32. No other malfunctions were indicated.
Weight and Airport Information
The recorded gross weight at takeoff was 3,782.5 pounds, exceeding the maximum takeoff weight of 3,600 pounds specified in the airplane’s Pilot’s Operating Handbook. For departures from runway 31 at Blue Ridge Airport, the FAA Chart Supplement notes a minimum climb rate of 321 feet per nautical mile and obstacles including trees up to 100 feet above ground level near the departure end.