Rob,

The NTSB reports do not seem to support your conclusions.  As I read the first one, although the Cirrus web site says otherwise, the pilot was the one who opened the chute in Jamaica, not the passenger, and it was because of an unspecified engine problem.  In the other case you quoted, the pilot stalled in IMC and entered a spin at low level.  That sounds like a pretty good reason for deploying the chute to me.

I personally think that the airframe chute is a potential life saver in many situations where there are few alternatives, especially for less experienced pilots.  If it is designed into the airplane from the outset, I suspect that the performance penalty will not be that great.

Jerry