Cirrus Design
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The Cirrus Design Corporation is an aircraft manufacturer founded in 1984 by Alan and Dale Klapmeier. Originally a maker of homebuilt aircraft kits, the company has created and marketed several designs; three are four-seat, single-engine airplanes: the SRV, the SR20 and the SR22, currently in production as of 2005. The VK-30 was a pusher-propeller design, sold as a kit, of which very few were built. Cirrus is headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota and has a facility in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
Cirrus aircraft are designed around advanced technologies, with Avidyne FlightMax digital flight displays and modern avionics as standard equipment. The aircraft are all electric, no vacuum systems are used. Redundancy is provided by dual batteries and alternators. The SR22 is also available with TKS de-icing equipment, but as of 2005 is not certified for flight into known icing conditions.
A unique feature of Cirrus aircraft is the Cirrus Aircraft Parachute System (CAPS), a ballistic parachute system that allows the entire aircraft to descend safely from an emergency. Cirrus is the first manufacturer to be awarded FAA certification for a production aircraft with a ballistic parachute system. CAPS is standard on every Cirrus. The system is designed for the safety of the occupants rather than the aircraft, and serious damage may result to the aircraft when used. As such, the system is considered a last resort. Cirrus has compared the ground impact from a CAPS deployment to a drop from ten feet above ground level. There have been a number of successful emergency deployments.
The aircraft incorporate other unusual design elements. All Cirrus aircraft use a "side yoke" instead of the traditional yoke or stick flight controls. The aircraft also use a single power lever that adjusts both throttle and propeller RPM via a mechanical cam actuated throttle and propellor control system. Construction is dominated by the use of composite materials, although traditional aluminum is used where necessary.
The company has achieved notable success. According to the General Aviation Manufacturers' Association, in 2005 the SR22 was the number one selling certified single engine airplane.
External links
- [Cirrus Design website]
- [General Aviation Manufacturers Association website]
- [Cirrus Owners and Pilots Association website]
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