Cessna 182M accident near Kanab, Utah, August 30, 2025
On August 30, 2025 at about 1:00 pm local time, a 1969 Cessna 182M, registered N71331, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Kanab, Utah (Kanab Muni airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 30, 2025 · about 1:00 pm local time
- Place
- Kanab, Utah · Kanab Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182M, built 1969 · all 182Ms on the register
- Registration
- N71331 · registry record · serial 18259582
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the airplane owner, he had loaned the accident airplane to his brother-in-law, and the airplane had subsequently been returned to the owner. When the airplane was returned, the owner said he discovered that the propeller had damage that was consistent with a propeller strike. During a subsequent damage inspection of the airplane, maintenance personnel discovered substantial damage to the airplane’s fuselage and firewall that was consistent with a hard landing event. The owner then confronted the brother-in-law about the damage, and he confirmed that the damage occurred while he was operating the airplane but provided no further information concerning the accident. The owner reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Repeated attempts by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge to contact the accident pilot were unsuccessful, and he did not submit the required NTSB Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report Form 6120.1.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Hard landing during landing defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Aircraft capability › (general) › Capability exceeded
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Landing flare › Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Incorrect action performance › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 15,000 hours in all; 15 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,257 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 10, 2025; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor O-470 SERIES (piston); 2,561 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 19, 6,200 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 32°F (0°C)
Weather report (METAR): SA 30/08/2025 12:55-> METAR KAZC 301255Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 13/12 A3024 RMK AO2=
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ANC25LA115.