A midair collision between a Metroliner and SR-22 near Denver- thankfully no life loss !

Midair collision - But, Lives saved !

A midair collision between a Metroliner and Cirrus SR-22 aircraft near Denver Centennial Airport has thankfully resulted in no loss of lives.

The Metroliner carrying cargo ended up landing safely , while the SR-22 appears to have used its Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS).

The Story !

Generally, accidents involving mid-air collisions end up violently resulting in multiple loss of lives. Wednesday-12th May was an exception in Colorado, USA.

The Key Lime Air Metroliner had single pilot on board, that was performing a cargo-only flight ( KG-970) from Salida to Denver Centennial  in Colorado.

Both the aircrafts crossed the path resulting in a mid-air collision as they were attempting to land on parallel runways. However, ATC tower had informed both pilots of each other’s presence. 

The Metroliner pilot was on a visual approach to the runway 17L, descending through FL64, about 3nm north of 17L’s threshold.

Cirrus SR-22, with two occupants, was making a descend through FL64, on approach to runway 17R, but unfortunately it overshot the turn, going beyond the centerline of runway 17L crossing the path of the Metroliner.

And the result is - mid-air collision, the Cirrus hit the top rear of the Metroliner’s rear fuselage, also snipped its vertical stabilizer . After this also, the Metroliner did not collapse and continued for a safe landing.

On the other hand, the Cirrus SR-22 pilot used aircraft’s CAPS (Cirrus Airframe Parachute System) to save the lives of both the occupants.

Aircraft Details :

First aircraft (runway 17L) : Swearingen SA226-TC Metro III ‘Metroliner’, Registration : N280KL.

Second Aircraft (runway 17R) : Cirrus SR-22 , Registration : N416DJ.