"Kev" wrote:
I did run across one quote from the Cirrus president, who said he
"wished they'd demonstrated a normal spin recovery to the FAA".
That's interesting, because it sounds like it's at least possible.

Mark Twain once noted "A lie can travel halfway around the world while the
truth is putting on its shoes." The idea that "Cirrus aircraft can't be
recovered from a spin" seems to be the kind of thing that Twain had in
mind. So here's a link to a Cirrus web page stating that spin recovery was
accomplished on both the SR20 and SR22:

http://www.cirrusdesign.com/pilotswo...cle_06_03.aspx

"Question: Has any spin testing been conducted in the CIRRUS airplanes?

CIRRUS Engineer: Yes, CIRRUS has done spin testing in both the SR20 and the
SR22, and we've done a variety of spins in both models. But, that's
different than saying we've completed the entire spin matrix in each plane
in every conceivable condition and configuration - because we haven't.
Eventually we decided to take the logical stand that spin prevention is the
key to preventing needless fatalities, and attempts to make the airplane
spin-certified would just muddy the waters."

Much of the article discusses the engineering tradeoffs Cirrus chose and
why they chose them. I found it interesting and useful.

Hopefully with its shoes on, the truth can make up some ground.