A family of three onboard a four-seat plane landed safely thanks to an emergency full-plane parachute. Spectators were reportedly surprised when they witnessed the incident -- a plane with a parachute.
Parachute Emergency System Saves Family From Crash-Landing
Artem Konokuk, 38, his partner, and two-year-old daughter were traveling on a 170-mile journey down the coast to Santa Rosa on March 8, where they own a home, aboard Circus SR22 when the plane's only engine cut out at 1:15 p.m. Friday. Due to the incident, they used the parachute emergency system and landed in the forests of Whitehorn, California. However, the tree branches caught the plane and got trapped 100 feet above the ground.
The family somehow avoided having the precariously positioned Cirrus plane crash into them when they scrambled clear and descended the tree. The 2,200-pound aircraft was now twisted metal, crushed, torn open, and upside-down on the ground next to the family, who were safely tending to their injuries when the rescuers arrived.
The captain of the neighboring Mendocino County Sheriff's Office called the young Konokuk family's escape with only wounds and bruises "a miracle."
Numerous first responders, including the Humboldt County Sheriff's, California Highway Patrol, Southern Humboldt Tech Rescue, and numerous local fire departments, responded to the crash scene on Friday in the woods.
Rescuers were astounded to see how their single-engine aircraft, clinging desperately below the emergency parachute, slid across a valley and finally came to rest in a tree.
According to the local sheriff's statement, the pilot started to investigate why the aircraft lost engine power but discovered that the jet was too low in height for recovery. So, the pilot activated the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS), slowing the aircraft's descent.
What Is CAPS?
The Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) is a massive parachute composed of indestructible Kevlar that can safely drift an entire single-engine craft down to Earth. The 20-year-old Cirrus SR22 aircraft was equipped with CAPS.
Cirrus's CAPS can be considered as a whole-plane emergency recovery parachute system. With the push of a lever, the pilot or co-pilot can release the solid-fuel rocket in an emergency while in flight from a hidden compartment that also houses the parachute.
The device's 65-foot-diameter canopy opens in seconds when the rocket quickly pulls the parachute backward from the aircraft's back.
The parachute's canopy is made entirely of nylon and kevlar, which is woven to military specifications that include "yarn count, yarn twist, weave type, and finish."
In one part, Teflon is used as a textile buffer to guarantee desirable aging properties. According to the company, this is an important design factor for emergency equipment that might be stored and unused for extended periods.
According to safety material from Cirrus Aircraft, the chute may reduce the plane's forward velocity to zero in about eight seconds, possibly averting accidents with vertical structures like cliffs or buildings and a crash on the ground.
The harness straps and attached CAPS airplane parachutes are kept inside the plane's body or fuselage.
Components called "reefing line cutters" realign the parachute's orientation concerning the aircraft eight seconds following the first deployment.
The line cutters bring the airplane from its initial "nose low position" immediately following CAPS deployment to the level position beneath the parachute.
Keeping the passengers 'right-side-up' during a crash landing reduces the risk of a slow-motion but direct collision with the Earth below.
In March 2023, 253 survivors were reunited with their families with the help of the company's ground-breaking rocket-launched parachute.
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