Textron Aviation INC 172S accident near Cottonwood, Arizona, February 20, 2025
On February 20, 2025 at about 9:45 pm local time, a 2023 Textron Aviation INC 172S, registered N726ER, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Cottonwood, Arizona (Cottonwood 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 pilot undergoing instructions’ loss of aircraft control during landing, and the flight instructor’s failure to promptly intervene.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 20, 2025 · about 9:45 pm local time
- Place
- Cottonwood, Arizona · Cottonwood · 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 2023
- Registration
- N726ER · registry record · serial 172S13029
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was practicing landing maneuvers with their flight instructor. The early part of the flight was uneventful, and they decided to work on short-field landings, all of which resulted in go-arounds. They subsequently started to practice power-off 180° landings, and on the third landing attempt, the airplane was high on the approach. The student performed a forward slip maneuver, however the airplane was traveling too fast on touchdown, and it bounced. The nose then dropped, and the nosewheel struck the runway. The flight instructor took the flight controls just as the nosewheel struck the runway again and added power to initiate a go-around. The airplane sustained substantial damage during the sequence, however the airplane performance appeared unaffected and the crew continued training unaware of the damage. It was not until after landing, when the lesson was complete, that they noticed damage to the propeller tip and forward fuselage structure. The pilot and flight instructor reported no preimpact mechanical anomalies or malfunctions that could 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
- Simulated/training event during approach (VFR pattern final)
- Abnormal runway contact during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Identification/recognition › Instructor/check pilot
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Student/instructed pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Instructor/check pilot
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 665 hours in all; 451 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 60 in the last 30 days; 595 as pilot in command; 388 on instruments
- Last flight review: November 28, 2023
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 278 hours in all; 278 in this make and model; 21 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 79 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: November 22, 2024
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,839.9 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, February 11, 2025; 33.2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-L2A (piston); 1,582 hours total
- Operator: Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University INC
The flight
- Departed from: PRC Prescott AZ at 8:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 14/3, 4,250 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 15 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.93 inHg
- Observation at 1:55 pm from P52
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Photographs from the investigation 3 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
2 documents, released by the NTSB on September 5, 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, 12 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Photographs | PDF, 2 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.