Cirrus SR20

 Cirrus SR20

Cirrus SR20. Photo: Tomás Del Coro from Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Make	Cirrus
Model	Cirrus SR20
Type	Light aircraft
Country	United States
First flight	21 March 1995
Built	1999–present
Number built	2,084 (through 2025)
Registered in the US	1,552 (FAA register, October 30, 2026)
Seats	1 pilot, 3 passengers (4 using 60/40 flex seating in post-2012 models)
Engine	Continental IO-360-ES, 200 hp
Cruise speed	155 kn (SR20-G3)
Service ceiling	17,500 ft (SR20-G3)
Max weight	3,050 lb (SR20-G3)
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The Cirrus SR20 is a four- or five-seat, single-engine airplane made of composite materials, built since 1999 by Cirrus Aircraft of Duluth, Minnesota. It was the company's first type-certified airplane, certified in 1998. In the U.S. there are 1,552 with a valid registration.

It was the first production general aviation airplane with a parachute to lower the whole airplane to the ground after a loss of control, structural failure or midair collision, and the SR series was the first mass-produced light airplane with all-composite construction and flat-panel avionics. The SR20 was developed into the larger Cirrus SR22 in 2001.

History

A mock-up was shown in 1994, the SR20 first flew on March 21, 1995, and the FAA certified it on October 23, 1998, at a time when few new general aviation airplanes were being certified. Deliveries began in July 1999, and from 1999 to 2015 Cirrus delivered more than 6,000 SR-series airplanes.

The 2007 G3 gained a lighter, larger wing with a carbon-fiber spar, adding 6 to 7 knots of cruise speed. From 2004 to 2009 Cirrus also sold the SRV, a simpler, VFR-only SR20 for private owners and flight schools.

Safety record

A 2011 review of SR20 and SR22 accident records by Aviation Consumer found an overall accident record better than average for light airplanes, but a fatal accident rate of 1.6 per 100,000 hours, above the U.S. general aviation rate of 1.2. By 2013 the fatal rate had fallen to 1.01 per 100,000 flight hours.

Registered in the United States

The FAA register lists 1,552 of these airplanes with a valid U.S. registration. Here they are by the model name the FAA uses.

FAA model name	Registered
SR20	1,552

Specifications (SR20-G3)

Item	SR20-G3
Crew	1 pilot
Passengers / capacity	3 passengers (4 using 60/40 flex seating in post-2012 models)
Length	26 ft
Wingspan	38 ft 4 in
Height	8 ft 11 in
Empty weight	2,126 lb
Maximum takeoff weight	3,050 lb
Engine	Continental IO-360-ES, 200 hp (six cylinder, horizontally-opposed piston aircraft engine)
Cruise speed	155 kn
Stall speed	56 kn
Service ceiling	17,500 ft
Rate of climb	828 ft/min

Figures as given in the Wikipedia article and its sources.

Owner and mechanic notes: coming soon. What to check before you buy, common problems and what they cost to fix. Airplane Wiki is gathering this from owners and mechanics.

Photos

• 
  Cirrus SR20, no Aeroporto de Avaré, São Paulo, Brasil. Photo: José Reynaldo da Fonseca, CC BY 2.5
• 
  Cirrus SR20 #1694 (registration G-TAAC) at Denham Airfield, England. Photo: MilborneOne, CC BY-SA 4.0
• 
  A Cirrus SR-20 belonging to Western Michigan University taxis along the ramp. Photo: Tcmdkzoo, Public domain
• 
  Purdue Cirrus SR20. Photo: FlugKerl2, CC BY-SA 3.0
• 
  A Continental IO-360 engine mounted on a Cirrus SR20 single-engine aircraft. Photo: YSSYguy at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
• 
  Cirrus SR20 landing. Photo: FlugKerl2, CC BY-SA 3.0
• 
  Cirrus SR20. Photo: Megan Davis, Public domain
• 
  An SR20 aircraft descends to the ground, supported by a ballistic parachute. Photo: NASA, Public domain

All photos are from Wikimedia Commons; click a photo for its full credit and license.

Buying a Cirrus SR20

For sale listings: coming soon. Airplane Wiki will list Cirrus SR20s for sale here, with the facts on this page beside every listing.