Cessna 172M accident near Palmer, Alaska, December 13, 2025
On December 13, 2025 at about 1:01 am local time, a 1972 Cessna 172M, registered N20305, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Palmer, Alaska (Palmer Municipal Airport). It was an instructional 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot’s failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 13, 2025 · about 1:01 am local time · cases in 2025
- Place
- Palmer, Alaska · Palmer Municipal Airport · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172M, built 1972 · all 172Ms on the register
- Registration
- N20305 · registry record · serial 17261176
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot reported that she was returning from a solo cross-country flight. During the landing roll, as she released back pressure on the flight controls, she stated that it felt like the right wheel “caught” and the airplane veered to the right. The student pilot attempted to correct with opposite rudder; however, the airplane exited the right side of the runway and nosed over, which resulted in substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer and rudder. The student pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
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
- Runway excursion during landing (landing roll)
- Loss of control on ground during landing (landing roll) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Student/instructed pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 74 hours in all; 10.6 in this make and model; 13 in the last 90 days; 13 in the last 30 days; 6.4 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,259.2 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2D (piston); 9,259 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BCV Birchwood AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 34, 6,009 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 9°F (-13°C), dew point 3°F (-16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.28 inHg
- Observation at 4:00 pm from PAAQ
Weather report (METAR): METAR PAAQ 130053Z 00000KT 10SM CLR M13/M16 A3028 RMK AO2 SLP260 T11281156
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 2 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
Photograph 1 – Accident airplane at accident site.
Photograph 2 – Accident airplane at accident site.The NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
3 documents, released by the NTSB on June 25, 2026. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 11 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Memorandum for Record A�� Telephone Interview, Pilot | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Investigative Photographs | PDF, 3 pages · our copy | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N20305 on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 172 Skyhawk 20,680 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,684 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2D 258 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Warren "Bud" Woods Palmer Municipal · nearest airport
- Birchwood Airport · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,930 since 1982 · 824 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,146 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC26LA008.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.