Cessna 172 accident near Deland, Florida, December 8, 2025
On December 8, 2025 at about 7:00 pm local time, a 1982 Cessna 172, registered N64859, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute near Deland, Florida (Deland Municipal Airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor’s inadequate fuel quantity inspection, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 8, 2025 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Deland, Florida · Deland Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 P, built 1982 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N64859 · registry record · serial 17275636
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During a cross-country instructional flight, the airplane experienced a total loss of engine power, and the flight instructor performed a forced landing to a road about 2 miles from the destination airport. During the landing, the airplane struck trees and came to rest upright, sustaining substantial damage to the wings and fuselage. A recovery crew responded the same day and noted that both wing fuel tanks were intact but absent of fuel. An FAA inspector subsequently examined the wreckage at the recovery facility and found no fuel in the filter at the belly sump, which was the lowest point in the fuel system. The flight instructor later reported that fuel exhaustion was the likely cause of the accident. He stated that before departure, he relied on avionics, which indicated 21 gallons of fuel onboard rather than visually verifying the fuel quantity in the wing fuel tanks, and the avionics indication was likely inaccurate.
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
- Loss of engine power (total) during enroute
- Fuel exhaustion during enroute defining event
- Off-field or emergency landing during emergency descent
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Planning/preparation › Fuel planning › Instructor/check pilot
- Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Inadequate inspection
- Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid management
Flight instructor
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine sea; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 16,000 hours in all; 4,000 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 12,000 as pilot in command; 5,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: serious injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 865 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 13,155 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 20, 2024
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: X50 Edgewater FL at 6:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,400 ft
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 29.95 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 pm from DAB, 13 miles away
Weather report (METAR): METAR KDAB 081853Z 36007KT 10SM BKN014 BKN036 19/15 A2995 RMK AO2 SLP142 T01890150
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 2 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
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 17, 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, 17 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Memoranda for the Record | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Investigation 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.
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.