Cirrus CAPS Save, Go-Around Stall, Advisory Glidepath Trap

Advisory Glidepath Can Be a Trap

Max talks with Rob Mark about one of the most important instrument-flying subtleties many pilots still do not fully understand: advisory glidepath guidance, often shown as “+V.” The discussion starts with Max describing an unusual request from the NTSB, which contacted him as an expert to talk about the details of advisory glidepaths. That conversation sets up one of the central themes of the episode: an advisory glide slope does not change the rules of a nonprecision approach. Pilots need to be aware that current autopilots don't level off at the MDA when coupled to an advisory glide slope.

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Max explains that pilots flying an LNAV+V or LP+V approach still must level at the MDA and cannot descend farther without the required visual references. That is what makes the advisory glidepath trap so dangerous. It looks like a glideslope, but it is not a glideslope. Rob points out how easy it is to see a vertical path and assume it is safe to keep following it. Max adds that the problem is made worse because LPV and LP+V look and sound very similar, even though they mean very different things operationally. Both of them argue that many instrument pilots need to study approach minimums more carefully and adopt personal minimums higher than “200 and a half.” They also discuss a new Garmin Service Alert that’s just been released that talks about the issues surrounding approaches with +V.

Recent Accidents
The team first discusses a recent accident in which the pilot of N58544, a Cessna 182, took off from York, PA with at tow bar attached. Rob and Max share what they teach student pilots about the handling of tow bars to avoid these kinds of mishaps.

Bonanza and Malibu Preliminary Reports

The first preliminary report involves Beech A36 Bonanza N66519, which crashed near Gulf Shores, Alabama, on March 7, 2026. The aircraft was on an IFR flight from Flagler Executive Airport in Florida when it began the approach into weather reported as 200 overcast and one-half mile visibility. According to the discussion, the pilot was having weak radio reception with Pensacola Approach, flew through the final approach course, and then received vectors to rejoin. The airplane entered a series of turns, brief climbs, and descents before hitting the water at high speed. Max and Rob see this as a likely loss-of-control accident during one of the most demanding phases of instrument flight, with weather near minimums adding pressure but not fully explaining the breakdown.

The second preliminary report covers Piper PA-46 Malibu Mirage N451MA, which crashed near Hartsburg, Missouri, on April 16, 2024, during a day IFR flight from Madison, Wisconsin, to Siloam Springs, Arkansas. The airplane had cruised normally at 16,000 feet before deviating and then entering a steep descending turn with a descent rate of more than 16,000 feet per minute. Severe convective weather was in the area, including embedded thunderstorms, hail, tornado potential, and strong winds. Rob uses this accident to revisit the Malibu’s long history of loss-of-control crashes and to highlight the PA-46 type club’s effort to improve training and decision-making through its Master Aviator program. Max reinforces the bigger lesson: type clubs and additional training are some of the cheapest safety tools any owner can buy.

A Cirrus CAPS Save and a Go-Around Stall

One of the most encouraging cases in the episode is Cirrus SR22 N272HM near Lake Elsinore, California, on December 23, 2025. During an IFR cross-country flight, the pilot misunderstood a routing clearance, became task-saturated in IMC, and then faced urgent terrain-related instructions from ATC. After disconnecting the autopilot and struggling to control pitch, the pilot deployed CAPS. The parachute brought the airplane down onto rocky terrain, and the pilot survived. Max strongly praises the pilot for making the right call. He notes that some pilots hesitate to use CAPS when they feel they created the problem themselves, but this pilot recognized that the situation was unraveling and used the system exactly as intended.

The next final report is Cirrus SR20 N1108T at Key Largo, Florida, on March 1, 2024. During landing in gusty crosswind conditions, the airplane drifted left in the flare and the pilot initiated a go-around. But instead of reducing flap setting in stages, the flaps were fully retracted, causing a loss of lift and an aerodynamic stall at low altitude. The airplane crashed on a golf course near the runway. Max uses this accident to hammer home a point he has made repeatedly in training: go-arounds are not simple, and they are often botched when pilots are stressed. He emphasizes that pilots need to practice them often and understand the airspeed and flap requirements for their specific aircraft.

Drunk Pilot Crash and Two Jaw-Dropping Ground Accidents

The most disturbing report in the episode involves Cessna 150 N1703Q near Clay, Kentucky, on March 8, 2024. The pilot, who was also a flight instructor, launched on a nighttime VFR flight in deteriorating weather and eventually descended to about 300 feet AGL before hitting trees. Investigators found multiple alcoholic beverage cans in the wreckage, and toxicology results suggested a blood alcohol level around 0.23 at the time of the crash. Rob does not dance around it. He calls the conduct reckless, and that is the right word. This accident combines alcohol, VFR into IMC, and controlled flight into terrain in one brutal chain of bad judgment.

Two ground accidents close the episode. In Stevensville, Texas, Van’s RV-9 N26AJ was hand-propped after a dead battery, but when the engine started, a falling headset pushed the throttle forward and the airplane ran uncontrolled into a terminal building. In Burnet, Texas, Bellanca N8213R was left idling while the pilot loaded baggage, sent a non-pilot passenger aboard, and then went into the FBO and bathroom. The airplane rolled about 75 yards and hit a parked vehicle. Both accidents are reminders that many wrecks do not begin with complicated aerodynamics. They begin with simple lapses in judgment.

This episode’s throughline is crystal clear: survive by respecting procedures, maintaining proficiency, and making disciplined decisions before the situation starts to slide downhill.