If the airplane in question  had a parachute, there are several types of "experiences" that could be seen.

1.  Normal Deployment
The parachute was deployed by the pilot and it worked.
One hundred and ninety people in about 145 accidents have done this in the past 25 years.

2.  The parachute was deployed outside the Envelope of Safety by the pilot so as not able to work effectively. The envelop of safety is the speed and altiude limits imposed by the physics of speed and airplane weight. This out of envelope deployment is what happens when the plane is going too fast or parachute activated too close to the ground where it does not have time to work.

The Parachute works only by positive action from the pilot or passenger at an adequate speed and altitude. Have been as low as 90 feet and high as 16,000.

3.  Impact Deployment.
The parachute was not activated nor deployed by the pilot, but the parachute was found outside the aircraft.