Cirrus attracting pilots with 'The Wrong Stuff'?

There's been some discussion here about Cirrus' less-than-stellar safety
record. Someone mentioned that perhaps the Cirrus line, with all of its
whiz-bang electronics and slippery airframe, is attracting the "wrong" kind
of pilots -- meaning, perhaps, too much cash and not enough sense?

I've always heard this same thing said about the Bonanza (the "Fork-tailed
doctor killer") -- but recent accident stats for the Bo don't appear to bear
this out.

Two data points that don't mean much: The only two guys I have personally
known to have bought a Cirrus PRECISELY fit this description. Both guys
have tons of money, not enough free time to stay current, and fly
complicated, long-distance flights on the rare occasions they fly at all.

What's the group-think on this one? Is Cirrus just good at attracting
crappy pilots? Or is there something else at work here?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

In article OiQhc.2643$aQ6.415323@attbi_s51, Jay Honeck
wrote:

What's the group-think on this one? Is Cirrus just good at attracting
crappy pilots? Or is there something else at work here?

Can we change the question to "Nominees for the Darwin Award"?

I am not at liberty to answer you because I know some Cirrus pilots myself.
--
Roger Long

I haven't flown a Cirrus, ;( , so I can't speak to the flying
characteristics. But the flight characteristics offered by "Toly":

"but in the air the plane is very slippery and feels like it's skating on
ice, only in three dimensions"

sounds like a recipe for disaster, especially for a pilot that is rusty. One
of the things I really like about my TR182 is that it like flying a rock.
Yes, it is boring, and I have thought lately about trading it in for a fun
airplane like a Maule or Citabria - but, in it's defense, when I haven't
flown for a while it is incredibly forgiving of imperfect piloting.

Michael

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:OiQhc.2643$aQ6.415323@attbi_s51...
There's been some discussion here about Cirrus' less-than-stellar safety
record. snip

Jay,

I've always heard this same thing said about the Bonanza (the "Fork-tailed
doctor killer") -- but recent accident stats for the Bo don't appear to bear
this out.


But it was during the early years of the Bo. The Cirrus is new. That's where I
would see parallels.

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)

Michael,

"but in the air the plane is very slippery and feels like it's skating on
ice, only in three dimensions"


That's just, well, sorry, BS, IMHO. The Cirrus is one of the best flying
planes I have flown. It tops the Bonanza. Notice that Toly compares it to
flying Pipers and such. Well, it definitely doesn't fly like a spam can.
That's great!

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)

On Thu, 22 Apr 2004 14:42:07 GMT, "Michael 182"
wrote:

I haven't flown a Cirrus, ;( , so I can't speak to the flying
characteristics. But the flight characteristics offered by "Toly":

"but in the air the plane is very slippery and feels like it's skating on
ice, only in three dimensions"

This description is crap. I fly a Cherokee 180, and got my first time
in a Cirrus 2 weeks ago. The handling is a bit sportier than my
Cherokee, but is by no means uncontrollable. It took me all of 5
minutes to get used to it.

-Nathan

"Flying" reports that the accident rate is plummeting and quickly
approaching 182 territory. If the kind of pilots Jay refers to are
predisposed to become Cirrus owners, the accidents certainly must have
really gotten their attention and might create a quicker self correction
than in some other airplane.
--
Roger Long

I don't think the Cirrus is hard to fly. It feels a little
different because of the sidestick, which takes a few
minutes to get used to, and it IS a pain to hand fly because
of the poorly setup trim controls. But I don't think it's
especially slippery if that means difficult to control.

Someone mentioned the flying article, however that
was written just before the recent crop of three incidents.

John

"Michael 182" wrote in message
news:3RQhc.2723$_L6.433903@attbi_s53...
I haven't flown a Cirrus, ;( , so I can't speak to the flying
characteristics. But the flight characteristics offered by "Toly":

"but in the air the plane is very slippery and feels like it's skating on
ice, only in three dimensions"

sounds like a recipe for disaster, especially for a pilot that is rusty.
One
of the things I really like about my TR182 is that it like flying a rock.
Yes, it is boring, and I have thought lately about trading it in for a fun
airplane like a Maule or Citabria - but, in it's defense, when I haven't
flown for a while it is incredibly forgiving of imperfect piloting.

Michael

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:OiQhc.2643$aQ6.415323@attbi_s51...
There's been some discussion here about Cirrus' less-than-stellar safety
record. snip

On Thu, 22 Apr 2004 15:14:57 GMT, "Roger Long"
om wrote:

"Flying" reports that the accident rate is plummeting and quickly
approaching 182 territory. If the kind of pilots Jay refers to are
predisposed to become Cirrus owners, the accidents certainly must have
really gotten their attention and might create a quicker self correction
than in some other airplane.

Early last year the accident rate got the attention of COPA. They
instituted a safety program which included ground and flight training.
The insurance companies beside raising rates, started requiring
recurrent training from Cirrus certified instructors. The number of
accidents did decrease, but with 3 accidents in the last month any
hope of a quick statistical turn around was destroyed.