# NTSB ERA25FA309: Cessna A185F, N714HE, Bangor, ME, August 22, 2025 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Fatal · Class 3 · Field · Preliminary report - Date: August 22, 2025, 13:21 local (17:21 UTC) - Place: Bangor, ME · On airport property - Coordinates: 44.8, -68.816667 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.8000&lon=-68.8167&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) - Highest injury: Fatal - Injuries: 1 fatal - Status: Investigation ongoing - Investigation class: Class 3 - NTSB office: Eastern Region Aviation - Parties: Textron Aviation, FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 200839 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ERA25FA309 - NTSB preliminary report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/200839/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA25FA309 ## Preliminary report On August 22, 2025, at 1321 eastern daylight time, a Cessna A185F, N714HE, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Bangor, Maine. The pilot was fatally injured. The flight was being conducted as a 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 ferry flight. According to the airplane owner, the pilot was ferrying the airplane from Europe to the United States. The final destination was Rutland, Vermont. A preliminary review of radar data and air traffic control communications revealed the pilot departed Goose Bay Airport (CYYR), Newfoundland - Labrador, Canada, at 0801, and flew direct to Bangor International Airport (BGR), Bangor, Maine, to clear customs. The pilot was provided with the airport’s current automated terminal information service (ATIS) information and cleared for a visual approach to runway 33. While on short final, the pilot asked the control tower for a “wind check.” A controller responded, “…wind 020 at 14 gusting to 19.” A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employee was driving south on the airport perimeter road located west of the runway when he saw the airplane attempting to land. He said, “While the plane was landing, I noticed his left wing getting very close to the pavement. He seemed to have tried to correct himself, however there was a crosswind blowing East.” The witness said the airplane veered left toward the precision approach path indicator (PAPI) lights and struck one of the lights. The airplane then “picked back up into the air” and flew “sideways in an arcing motion” directly toward him. The witness ducked down and heard the airplane hit the airport perimeter fence. When he looked up, he saw the airplane impact the ground and cartwheel. A review of cell phone and airport surveillance video revealed that as the airplane touched down on the runway, it bounced and began to ground loop to the left. The airplane’s left wing contacted the ground, and the airplane struck a PAPI light located on the left side of the runway. The airplane became airborne again and entered a steep left bank/turn, struck the airport perimeter fence, and impacted a field west of the runway. There was no postimpact fire. The pilot was an Italian citizen and held several Italian flight certificates. He also held a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) foreign-based private pilot certificate for airplane single-engine land. His last FAA second-class medical certificate was issued on May 31, 2024. At that time, he reported a total of 2, 200 flight hours. At 1253, the weather conditions at BGR were reported as wind from 350 degrees at 10 knots gusting to 18 knots, visibility 10 miles, with scattered clouds at 7,000 ft. At 1339, the weather conditions at BGR were reported as wind from 010 degrees at 9 knots gusting to 19 knots, 10 miles visibility, with scattered clouds at 7,000 ft. The airplane wreckage was recovered and taken to a secure facility for further examination by the NTSB. ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) (defining event); cases with it: [Cessna A185F, 75 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md?model=2072821), [All aircraft, 4,585 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md) - [Landing-aborted after touchdown: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230); cases with it: [Cessna A185F, 75 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md?model=2072821), [All aircraft, 4,585 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md) ## Aircraft - Registration: [N714HE](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N714HE-2026-03-31), registration cancelled 2026-03-31, S/N 18504396, built 1982 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA A185F - Registry model: [Cessna A185F](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-a185f) (registry code 2072821) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental IO-520 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-520-series) (registry code 17032, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 18504396 - Year built: 1982 - Airframe hours: 2763 - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Ferry, Part 91 - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, April 2, 2025 - Departed: CYYR, Goose Bay - Destination: Same as departure - Flight plan: VFR - Airport: BGR, Bangor Intl, runway 33, 11,440 × 200 ft, asphalt - Equipment: Electronic primary flight display, Onboard weather, Stall warning system, ADS-B, Auto-pilot, Electronic multifunction display ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 350° at 10 knots, gusting 18 - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Temperature: 25 °F, dew point 9 °F - Altimeter: 29.95 inHg - Observed at: BGR, 0.5 nm away ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20250822011649A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20250822011649A), Aug 22, 2025: Cessna A185F, Bangor, ME, Destroyed, 1 fatal. On August 22, 2025, at 1320 local time, a Cessna 185, being operated under 14 CFR part 91, was destroyed while the pilot was attempting to land on runway 33 at… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.