• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
General Aviation News

General Aviation News

Because flying is cool

  • Pictures of the Day
    • Submit Picture of the Day
  • Stories
    • News
    • Features
    • Opinion
    • Products
    • NTSB Accidents
    • ASRS Reports
  • Comments
  • Classifieds
    • Place Classified Ad
  • Events
  • Digital Archives
  • Subscribe
  • Show Search
Hide Search

Crankshaft failure for Cirrus

By NTSB · July 28, 2014 ·

Aircraft: Cirrus SR22. Injuries: None. Location: Pickens, S.C. Aircraft damage: Substantial.

What reportedly happened: A few minutes after leveling the airplane at a cruise altitude of 9,000 feet MSL, the pilot felt the engine slightly vibrate and noticed the propeller rpm began to rise rapidly. The oil pressure warning light illuminated. After unsuccessfully troubleshooting the engine problems, he shut down the engine and declared an emergency.

An air traffic controller informed the pilot of an airport four miles from his location, and he turned the airplane toward that airport and prepared for an emergency landing. When he turned the airplane toward the base leg of the traffic pattern at 1,200 feet, he added one notch of flaps. He felt the handling characteristics of the airplane change and it began to feel “mushy.”

He then retracted the flaps, and the condition worsened. As the airplane descended through 1,000 feet, the pilot thought that he had “lost control of the airplane” and decided to activate the airframe emergency parachute. The parachute deployed, and, within seconds, the airplane settled into trees about two miles from the airport. The airplane remained suspended in the trees until emergency personnel arrived on scene and rescued the occupants.

After the accident, the presence of oil was noted on the underside of the airplane. After the airplane was recovered from the trees, examination of the oil dipstick revealed small pieces of metal in the engine oil.

Examination of the engine revealed that the crankshaft was fractured and that the crankcase exhibited varying degrees of fretting and lock-slot elongation on the main bearing supports, which is consistent with the application of insufficient torque on the cylinder through-bolts by maintenance personnel.

New cylinders had been installed on the engine 113 hours before the accident. Because the cylinders were loose, the oil supply at the No. 2 main journal was shut off and the crankshaft broke, which resulted in the subsequent loss of oil pressure to the engine.

Probable cause: A total loss of engine power due to the failure of the crankshaft, which resulted from the application of insufficient torque on the cylinder through-bolts by maintenance personnel.

NTSB Identification: ERA12LA473

This July 2012 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.

About NTSB

The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent federal agency charged by Congress with investigating every civil aviation accident in the United States and significant events in the other modes of transportation, including railroad, transit, highway, marine, pipeline, and commercial space. It determines the probable causes of accidents and issues safety recommendations aimed at preventing future occurrences.

Share this story

  • Share on Twitter Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook Share on Facebook
  • Share on LinkedIn Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit Share on Reddit
  • Share via Email Share via Email

Become better informed pilot.

Join 110,000 readers each month and get the latest news and entertainment from the world of general aviation direct to your inbox, daily.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Curious to know what fellow pilots think on random stories on the General Aviation News website? Click on our Recent Comments page to find out. Read our Comment Policy here.

© 2025 Flyer Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.

  • About
  • Advertise
  • Comment Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Writer’s Guidelines
  • Photographer’s Guidelines