Good Day!I have a question about landing the SR22 when the chute has been deploye after engine failure.Is there anyway to slow the decent rate at the last second to allow for a smoother touchdown when making contact with the ground?My last flight the simulation crashed the aircraft (burried 1/2 into the ground) when touching down over a flat surface with the chute deployed. If this had been an actual landing of the SR22 this way, the pilot would have been seriously hurt or worse.I know the flight controls are somewhat effect during glide-down with the chute deployed, but exactly what is the correct procedure to have the SR22 land on it's wheels and stay there without be burried into the ground. The screenshot below is one of the less-serious landings using the chute. You wouldn't want to see the other ones.http://forums.avsim.net/user_files/128859.jpgYour input is appreciated!Happy Simming!Scott :-)ATP/CFII/DA20 Type Rated - Instructor Pilot - USAFA (KAFF), Colorado Springs, CO & at KCOSAOPA #00956593, since 1987Background in Corporate, Airline, and General AviationB.S. Degree in MISGamming System Specs: (Built this one myself)AMD Athlon-64 3000+ Gigabyte K8NS nForce3-250 Chipset 8x AGP Main Board 1GB DDR400 PC3200 Memory 160GB 7200 rpm Hard Drive 16x DVD-ROM Audigy 2ZS Gammer Sound Card (Set at BASIC acceleration)5.1 Channel Surround Sound Speakers256MB GeForce-5700 8X AGP Video Cotytech Gaming CaseCH Products Yoke, Rudder Pedals, Throttle QuadrantSaitek Cyborg Gold Joystic for Helo's & Stick equipped aircrafteDimensional Force Feedback HeadsetsSaitek Eclipse KeyboardWindows XP Pro SP2Home Network for using the Instructor StationFS9 Sliders maxed with other settings at their best quality positions.Average FPS: 25

They simulated it to a real cirrus, and cirrus says that landing with the chute is the equivlent of falling from 16 feet, deff not comfortable but if you pulled the chute do you really care bout comfort?

1) Did you drop full flaps prior to popping the CAPS?2) Did you pitch up the nose slighty, then slow to near stall prior to popping the CAPS?3) Did you crank trim full up?All of these things can help establish the slowest possible descent, but even so, you'll still be travelling ~1200 fpm when meeting the ground... ;)

From a person with contact with Cirrus design engineers in Duluth, he stated to me that once the the chute is deployed the stress on the airframe is such that while possible it is not probable that the airframe will be returned to service because of the stress distorting it. There have been real instances in both directions. I mention this only because it is not expected to save the aircraft but only to give the best possible chance for survival for those on board. I'm sure there is a prelanding procedure such as you describe to follow prior to chute deployment to minimize the stress and obtain the best attitude and performance for the softest touchdown while the flight controls can still function.I was in the military and in my company were some paratroopers. (I was not one.) They told me that they contact the ground at about 30 mph and learn to roll and not be rigid on ground contact. They also expected at that time about a six percent injury rate (broken ankles, etc.). If we apply that same thought to an emergency landing then when those on board walk or limp away then it is successful.I also imagine a pilot must make a decision based on terrain, what aircraft control is available including weather effects, and terrain visibility whether it is safer to deploy the chute as a last resort or choose to attempt to glide to an emergency landing which might be better for the physical condition of those on board.

There is a preliminary report of a fatal SR-22 crash (Feb 6, 2005) where the CAPS appears to have been deployed well outside the design envelope - a quote from the SR-22 POH states that deployment at airspeed above 133 KIAS has not been demonstrated. Structural overload and possible parachute failure are potential risks.To my knowledge there has been only one real world emergency deployment of the CAPS system in a Cirrus with survival of the pilot and passengers.Extremely disappointing when you consider the 13 fatal crashes of the SR-20 / SR-22 aircraft (Apr 10, 2001 - Feb 6, 2005 - NTSB database search - MFR = Cirrus - Severity = Fatal).That deployment occurred near Dallas. On a return to service flight after maintenance a major wing part fell off the aircraft and it was uncontrollable.The aircraft went down in an area of deep brush / small trees.The aircraft was destroyed - BUT most important - the pilot walked away.Another quote from the POH in an NTSB report - "CAPS [is] designed to bring the aircraft and its occupants to the ground in the event of a life-threatening emergency. The system is intended to save the lives of the occupants but will most likely destroy the aircraft and may, in adverse circumstances, cause serious injury or death to the occupants." CAPS deployment is a CRASH, not a landing.

Hi Reggie,There has only been one fatality in CAPS deployment in a Cirrus and that was the one mentioned earlier where the pilot was flying way too fast when he pulled the chute and tore the aircraft apart. The other fatalities have all been stall/spins and flight into terrain which is what kills many pilots of other aircraft... the chutes weren't pulled in those events. I don't have the exact numbers but there has been more than one real world emergency in the Cirrus where the CAPS system proved its worth and saved all souls aboard.

Just read the main Cirrus site there are a few stories of the CAPS working, one in Florida I recall and one over the Rocky Mountains where the pilot and occupants just stepped out after landing. I know from reading that the Cirrus seems to be impossible to recover from a spin? I dunno but none the less the CPAS seems to be an innovative design that seems to atleast give you a chance when you normally would not have one.

There has been three or four sucessful chute deployments, but no time to look them up. Recently, a pilot found that he could use the engine/prop/controls to turn the plane away from an oil refinery. But then his reasoning for using the chute in the first place, due to a loss of situational awareness was a bit on the weird side.However, I can see it now. A new section in the Cirrus POH dealing with obsticle manuvering, if your engine still works :D Come to think about it, I asked the factory demo pilot about that particular incident, while on a SR22 demo flight. He just grinned...L.Adamson

There was much speculation in the AOPA magazine and on various forums about why the CAPS has been used so seldom.If my memory is correct the AOPA review of the accident reports indicated that the CAPS could possbily have prevented deaths in about half the fatal accidents.The assumption was that pilots were reluctant to give up the fight to save the aircraft because they knew using the CAPS would result in total loss of the airframe.Again pure speculation - but probably an informed guess by the AOPA writers.I'm glad there have been more successful deployments. The one I cited received a lot of publicity from Cirrus as being the first successful deployment - including replacement of the airframe at their own expense by Cirrus.The Cirrus web site says:AIRFRAME PARACHUTE:The Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS

>Just read the main Cirrus site there are a few stories of the>CAPS working, one in Florida I recall and one over the Rocky>Mountains where the pilot and occupants just stepped out after>landing. I know from reading that the Cirrus seems to be>impossible to recover from a spin? I dunno but none the less>the CPAS seems to be an innovative design that seems to>atleast give you a chance when you normally would not have>one.Not so, the aircraft is not certified as `spin resistant` or for `spinning`, but that is not a lesser level of dynamic ability, rather a recognition that spins are to be avoided in all aircraft not designed for them, but that the Cirrus BRS represents a solution to a problem outside the parameters considered when the legislation was drawn up. There's a very interesting interview with Allan Klapmeier of Cirrus in this months Today's Pilot magazine and I quote from it here:"One of the misunderstandings or misconceptions about the BRS is that we installed it because of the stall/spin characteristics of the Cirrus range.""That couldn't be further from the truth. Firstly, the decision to fit the system was made before the aircraft had even flown, and second, the aircraft stalls very well."So another myth buried. Allcott

I got it from the link below; Im not a pilot so it very well could not be true. :)http://philip.greenspun.com/flying/cirrus-sr20"Once in a spin the SR20 and SR22 are virtually impossible to recover, according to the test pilots."

Yes, deploying the chute was not the issue. It is the "touch-down." If the average rate of decent is around 1200 feet per minute as you state, then there definately would be some damage to the aircraft and maybe the pilot.When I fly for real I try to get my touchdown rate around 200 fpm, or less, in the flare.I did trim full-up and use full elevator back pressure, but sometimes MSFS would still register a crash.This CAPS system is very interesting to me and that is why I am wondering if there is a way to make a "safer" landing via a softer touchdown.To be honest, if deploying the CAPS system is a 50/50 propsition on making a safe landing, I might prefer to use the best glide speed without the chute to have a more controlled landing in an entire power failure situation.I had a complete engine failure two summers ago due to a bad FCU, while flying here in Colorado, and had to land my C172 in a field with a student on board. There was no damage to the plane (other than the tires needing to be replaced) and it was a controlled, almost normal landing all the way down.This allowed for a very soft touchdown. But the CAPS doesn't seem to allow for this "softer-landing" technique. So that's why I am trying to figure out if there is a way to control the decent rate after the chute has been deployed, resulting in less damage to the aircraft and hopefully the pilot.Thanks for all your input!Scott :-)

The Eaglesoft Cirrus is designed to emulate CAPS deployment within the maximum allowances afforded by FS2004. It helps to deploy at below 100 knots, since high speed deployment will inevitably pull the aircraft into a severe upward pitch.Once the CAPS is established you can alleviate nose-down attitude by applying up trim and pulling back slightly on the elevator.In hundreds of test flights I could manage to safely "land" the Cirrus with up trim and elevator so that damage was minimal and decent rate was survivable. But this is not a guaranteed system, as with the reasl aircraft. It is there to give a better chance to the occupants.Kind Regards,Rob Young - Eaglesoft Cirrus Airfile Designer