Textron Aviation INC 172S accident near Prescott, Arizona, November 7, 2024
On November 7, 2024 at about 1:42 pm local time, a 2021 Textron Aviation INC 172S, registered N679ER, was substantially damaged in an accident during taxi (to runway) near Prescott, Arizona (Prescott Regional/Ernest A Lov airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor’s failure to maintain clearance from a fence during taxi. Contributing to the accident was the low light conditions and obstacles adjacent to the deice bay.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 7, 2024 · about 1:42 pm local time · cases in 2024
- Place
- Prescott, Arizona · Prescott Regional/Ernest A Lov · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Textron Aviation INC 172S, built 2021
- Registration
- N679ER · registry record · serial 172S12754
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor and pilot undergoing instruction were preparing for a pre-sunrise instructional flight. The airplane was standing at an unlit deice bay adjacent to a hangar, parked airplane, and a chain-link fence. As the flight instructor attempted to maneuver around the parked airplane and taxi out of the deice bay, the right wing impacted the top of the chain-link fence. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing. The pilots reported 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
- Ground collision during taxi (to runway) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring environment › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Fence/fence post › Awareness of condition
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Light condition › Low light › Effect on operation
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 607 hours in all; 546 in this make and model; 204 in the last 90 days; 93 in the last 30 days; 458 as pilot in command; 204 on instruments
- Last flight review: March 20, 2024
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 151 hours in all; 151 in this make and model; 29 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 94 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,699.5 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, November 6, 2024
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-L2A (piston); 2,701 hours total
- Operator: Embry Riddle Aeronautical University INC
The flight
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 27°F (-3°C), dew point 16°F (-9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.09 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 am from KPRC
Weather report (METAR): KPRC 071353Z 00000KT 10SM CLR M03/M09 A3009 RMK AO2 SLP184 T10331094
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Photographs from the investigation 3 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
Photograph 1 – View of damage to right wing.
Photograph 2 – View of damage to right wing.
Photograph 3 – Diagram of ramp area.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 April 22, 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 | Mechanic Statement | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Photo Array | PDF, 4 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
- N679ER on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-L2A 2,644 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Prescott Rgnl/Ernest A Love Field · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Arizona 2,983 since 1982 · 466 in the last ten years
- Arizona 8,422 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/WPR25LA032.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.