- Date
- May 7, 2025, 21:16 local (May 8, 2025, 01:16 UTC)
- Place
- Ocala, FL
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Prior to flight
- Aircraft
- N174ACessna 182A
- Defining event
- Prior to flight: Electrical system malf/failure
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Status
- Completed · report November 6, 2025
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20250507004749A
- Case key
- 200132
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot’s decision to depart on the flight with known electrical issues and his subsequent loss of situational awareness (geographic position), which resulted in his eventual decision to perform an off-airport landing.
Findings · 4
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that he departed from his home during the afternoon and flew to another airport where he refueled the airplane. While there he encountered problems operating his airplane’s avionics and lights. He then asked another pilot if he could follow him back in the direction of his home airport. After departing, he lost sight of the other airplane and could not contact the other pilot using his radio. As night fell and it became dark, he was unable to determine his location stating he “lost [his] way.” He felt that he was low on fuel and needed to land. He saw a road and decided to perform a precautionary landing. The pilot was unable to recall the events that transpired after that point, but during the landing the airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing and fuselage.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N174A
- Reported as
- Cessna 182A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 34535
- Built
- 1957
- Airframe hours
- 3,926.2
- Engine
- Teledyne Continental Motors O-470, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 17, 2023 · 10 hours before
- Departed
- 28J · Palatka, FL
- Destination
- X04 · Apopka, FL
- Airport
- OCF · Ocala Intl-Jim Taylor Fld
- Equipment
- ADS-B
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 74
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- February 1, 2019
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 962 total · 962 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Wind
- 290° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.04 inHg
- Observed at
- OCF
- METAR
- KOCF 080051Z AUTO 29006KT 10SM CLR 27/21 A3004 RMK AO2 SLP172 T02670211
Docket · 6
The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 6, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 50.0 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.