Icon A5 accident near Smithville, Tennessee, February 25, 2025
On February 25, 2025 at about 9:45 pm local time, a 2018 Icon A5, registered N459BA, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Smithville, Tennessee (Smithville Muni airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to retract the landing gear prior to landing in water. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s failure to use the manufacturer’s provided checklist.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 25, 2025 · about 9:45 pm local time
- Place
- Smithville, Tennessee · Smithville Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Icon A5, built 2018
- Registration
- N459BA · registry record · serial 00070
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
After fueling the airplane at a nearby airport, the pilot was returning to his home lake to perform a water landing. During the landing, the landing gear were still configured in the extended position. The landing gear contacted the water and the airplane nosed down into the water. The airplane subsequently submerged in the water and sank. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and left wing. The pilot reported there were no mechanical failures or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed that the landing gear had no abnormalities that prevented 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
- Landing gear not configured during landing defining event
- Nose over/nose down during landing
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of checklist › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Gear extension and retract sys › Incorrect use/operation
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 90 hours in all; 68 in this make and model; 14 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 281 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 15, 2025; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,510 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rotax 912 iSc2 (piston); 281 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 0A5 Smithville TN at 9:42 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 7 knots, gusting 14
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.87 inHg
- Observation at 3:55 pm from SRB, 13 miles away
Weather report (METAR): KSRB 252155Z AUTO 28007G14KT 250V310 10SM CLR 20/01 A2987 RMK A01
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 4 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
Photograph 1 – Airplane postaccident
Photograph 2 – Right side fuselage accident damage
Photograph 3 – Right main landing gear pylon accident damage
Photograph 4 – Left wing accident damageThe 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
5 documents, released by the NTSB on July 17, 2025. 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, 10 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Memorandum for Record A�� Pilot Statement | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Memorandum for Record A�� Checklist Statement | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 4 | Landing Gear Exam | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 5 | Investigation Photographs | PDF, 5 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.
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 never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.