In 2003, mechanical and maintenance were the major cause of 15% of all GA accidents, and 7.5% of fatal accidents

Typically, one mistake or failure—a precipitating event—leads to another in a cascading series of malfunctions and mistakes, culminatiing in an accident. This is called the accident chain.

By any calculation, the average pilot could fly many, many lifetimes without having an accident of any sort, let alone a much more rare fatal mishap.

In 2003, electrical/ignition failures accounted for 3% of all accidents, and 0% of fatal accidents.

2004 Nall Report

  
 

CIRRUS Monthly Proficiency Program
3 part series on IFR operations
August – Part 1: Electrical Systems


Electrical System Abnormalities
Problem Situations: Causes and Remedies (continued)

  • ALT 2 Steady Illumination
  • Probable cause: ALT 2 has failed, and ALT 1 is now supplying power for the entire electrical system.
  • Remedy: Refer to the appropriate POH to review the procedure for handling an ALT 2 failure.
  • ALT 2 Flashing Illumination
  • No sweat: Because load capacity for ALT 2 is very low, it’s unlikely that you will ever see a flashing ALT 2 annunciator light.
STEP BACK, THINK AND DECIDE:
CIRRUS redundancy gives you time to diagnose ALT 1 and 2 problem issues and to safely respond.

 

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